BxB: The Black Blade of Misfortune
by Ultimate Hellhound
Summary: In Japanese, if you join the ideograms for "luck"and "life", you'll get the word for "Destiny". Therefore, by combining the idea of one's upbringing and own efforts, one's destiny might shine brighter than the others. In this world, neither humans, or animals, or even Gods are safe from life, therefore, we are not safe from the shackles of fate. We, comma, me, of course.
1. Prologue: Luck

**Hey there, my first fic here. I hope you like it. I did my best with it.**

 **DxD and its properties are owned by Ishibumi Ichiei and its respective magazines.**

 **Enjoy.**

* * *

 _'Surprise, surprise! Kurokami is asleep again...'_

 _'Is everything he ever does in class, sleeping during lectures, all alone. It's a bit gross, too, even for a transferred guy...'_

 _'It's a shame, too. He certainly is cute.'_

 _'Ew~, don't say that. He might hear you and want to talk to you...'_

 _'Creepy~...'_

Ah, shut up~. It's not like I don't want to have friends, being the transferred guy around is hard, you know. Besides, if you guys have time to talk like that behind my back, then come here and talk to me, damnit.

I can't believe it has been almost a month since I transferred here in Kuoh Academy, yet I have no friends to speak to, nor any professors seems to like me all that much, and my popularity as the 'new guy' vanished in the blink of an eye, and I end up just as the freaky boy who sleeps during classes. Not that I care much for that, but being talk about in whispers piss me off a bit, specially by girls. Ugh...

But no matter, no matter. The lesser they know about me, the better. I already have my fair share of problems to deal with, things they wouldn't even consider in their normal lives. I just need to play this persona until I finish high school, and then I'll deal with them without the system holding me back. But come to think of it, this school, this particular school, I notice it has a very distinctive scent roaming around. Something like... Scorch, or maybe something burning. I wonder why, though…

But whatever, it's not my problem, it won't be my problem. Mom said to hang low as for now and only act in case of danger, so this is what I'm doing. I'm kinda tired anyway, so I won't bother as for now. Just gonna hang low, take a nap, look at the passing time and hear the mean whispers coming from my classmates. This is my life now, and I couldn't ask for anything differen-...

 ***BAM!***

"Gh...!"

"Good afternoon, Kokkun." And I spoke too soon. When I was about to take my daily nap on the lap of my seat, there she comes again, storming inside my classroom and pulling a chair for herself to sit in front of me, the sound of her lunchbox hitting right next to me. Ugh, not her, not now, not again. Without even taking my cheek off the chair, I toss my stare upwards, and there she is: Long and smooth black hair, equally dark eyes and a ghastly pale skin that it looks like it shines. It looks like an angel, but it is just my 'girlfriend' Shirayuki Shirogane, who couldn't be further from an angel but a devil itself. Just my luck, is it lunchtime already? She sits in front of me, unwrapping her lunchbox. "I see that you have been sleeping during classes yet again. How shameful, to think my boyfriend would behave so rebelliously, it's almost laughable, I must say. But of course, I wouldn't laugh at you."

"Uhh~... Leave me alone, Yuki. Can't I just be your boyfriend when there are people around you?" You heard me right, we're in fact NOT in a relationship.

Allow me to elaborate this complex(not really) net of relationships between us: You see, Yuki is in fact one of the most popular girls around Kuoh Academy, probably among the top ten of the most beautiful students around, and accordantly, she's always being followed by those creeps that crawls all over the place in Kuoh Academy. In order to get rid of them, permanently at least, without resorting to murder or tarnishing his reputation among her classmates, she decided to lie that she had a boyfriend, and chose me, the new transferred student with the bad boy look and friendless background, as such. Since then, well, bullying, death threats, tacks on my shoes, destroyed shoe-locker, broken school supplies and rumors started to follow me, all because of this uppity, arrogant and holier-than-thou rich girl. I sigh, picking my own lunchbox to snag a bite or two from mom's lunch. I look back at her, eating her beef and shrimp dishes with more class than a madam in one of those old british movies, while I have to deal with omelets and riceballs, all while receiving such stares from all the guys in Kuoh. Geez...

"What are you talking about, Kokkun? I am your girlfriend; therefore, you are my boyfriend, 24/7. To think you would say such a cruel thing hurts me beyond humanly possible." She says this, but now she has the straightest face one could possibly muster, and just saying that, I could feel all the male gazes upon me grow colder. She says she's hurt, yet she didn't even flinch or took her eyes away from her dish. Damn it, if you're going to pretend I hurt your feelings at least look me in the eye. She cleans her mouth a little with a napkin, and sighs. "Fortunately, I'm merciful enough to say that I forgive your cruel words towards me, and they won't tarnish the perfect structure that is our relationship. Be grateful for such, Kokkun."

"Yeah, yeah; whatever." I said with another bite on my fried egg, feeling something like a sign being burned on my back from the sheer stares I'm receiving right now. What a pain, I should really just drop the façade and throw her into the dogs so that she leaves me alone… But alas, I can't because… She's really pretty, and has nice tits. Pretending or not, I'm not unhappy to have her as a not!girlfriend, and that's a memory I wouldn't mind keeping for myself, aside from all of the threats and bullying I'm receiving right now. She passes me a piece of sushi, and I eat it. Huh, isn't that Foie Gras? Wow, she is a rich, spoiled girl. I munched on that lovely delicious piece of avian suffering and pain, feeling the flavor of tears and blood until I swallow it. Nice, good indeed. I pass her a small piece of grilled fish so we just can call it even now. "Here's one for you too."

"Appreciated." She picks said piece and munch on it. She takes a bite, and then her face turns purple and her expression, sour; she coughs, she turns the other side, and picks a napkin and puts her mouth on it, making sounds. Eyeyeyey, I'm right here, you rich, spoiled girl. In the end, she toss the napkin away, recompose herself and, after a sip from her tea, resumes to eat her own lunchbox. "It was… Good."

"Please don't lie to me." I say. She turns her stare to me with a dark aura.

"It was trash"

"Please lie a little to me."

"I didn't like it much."

"Thank you." I now have the strength to lift my head from the desk of shame.

And just how it started, the conversation ended abruptly, and we continue to eat our lunch in peace, no other word muttered by the other party at all. As said before, she's not my real girlfriend, and aside from her body, everything about her is rotten to the core. I don't like her very much, and vice-versa, but she treats me with those expensive goods and I can fill a bit of my loneliness with her, so it's not that bad, nor good either I must say, even if out incompatibility limits the amount of conversation we can have. I finish my lunchbox at the same time she finishes hers, and so, nothing else, we're just facing each other sharing a single desk, no words spoken while everybody eyes us with certain envy and wrath, mostly at me, courtesy of the boys. I couldn't care less about it, but at least I can definitely say that I stand a step above those good-for-nothing virgin classmates(Even though I'm a virgin myself, but it feels great to feel above anyone else here). While looking around my inferior peers, however, my eyes drift elsewhere, my nose actually picking those same scents again. I sharpen my line of vision, and as expected, as I could see them, the three Madonna's of Kuoh academy, walking side by side, attracting the attention of all of the students that were not too busy sending me death glares. There they were, the three girls that I should avoid at all cost…

 **Rias Gremory** , the 1# Idol of Kuoh academy, the most beautiful girl around with her perfect measurements, kind demeanor and, most importantly, her long crimson hair, that shines its ruby colours across the corridors of Kuoh academy, and also the president of the Mysterious Occult Research club. What a foreign pretty girl is doing here in Japan? Beats me…

 **Akeno Himejima** , the second idol of Kuoh academy and apparently Gremory's secretary. The kind, easy-going, mellow girl of gentle smile and even bigger assets, considered by many the ultimate onee-san, her black hair and gentle eyes beaming all over the school. She's apparently Rias Gremory's best and foremost friend since they are always walking aroung together, and all things considered and in the least creepy way I can think of, her scent is far away different from the others…

And the third and last, and therefore more unimportant, **Sona Shitori** , the president of the student council and the third most popular girl in here, her strict rules, non-nonsensical demeanor yet rational and calculist mind makes her endearing for us, not to mention she has this intellectual charm around her which compensates the lack of assets her two other peers have in plentiful, quite an achievement, really. Wonder if she's god terms with Gremory…

Those three, the three Madonna's of Kuoh academy, the three girls I rather not mess with if I want to live. And I'm okay with that, if not a little bummer…

"Oh-hoh…?"

"Huh…?" Snapping me out of my reverie, I took a jump back when, before my eyes, there was a pretty sharp knife pointing at me! I tried to fight, but then a hand extended to me, picking me by the collar and making me get closer to the blade! It takes me a few seconds to realize that the one carrying said weapon was Shirayuki, her semi-closed eyes looking at me with intensity hotter than anyone before, pointing her knife even closer, so much I could feel my eyeball being scratched! No good, no good at all! I heard a disgusted sigh coming from her lips.

"Ara ara; how insightful. Considering adultery with those other bitches, Kokkun? I have you know, as my first boyfriend, I'm very happy to be in a relationship with someone right now. To know that my partner was infidel to yours truly will surely, without a doubt, break my dear little heart. Do you want that, Kokkun? Huh~?" She says all of that, but we can all see who's the one will end injured! Once I had total control over the situation, I could grasp myself better at my chair and find some ground to stand on, both ways. I need to calm down, even if I have a knife pointed at my most vulnerable and soft organ. "That sight of yours seems to be quite adventurous, and I can only imagine what passes through your head will all the information it gathers. Maybe if I cut it short by half, I can assume that your mind won't wander away from me anymore, yes? You don't need depth perception if I'm always by your side, yes?"

"No… No need to be upset, Yuki. It was just… A little slip, just that. I… I won't cheat on you." I said, picking her by her wrist and lowering the weapon on my face. Yeah, I know I can control her, but I feel more at home when I don't have to face possible threats head-on, just like that. She blinks in realization a few times, and then puts her weapon away by tossing it to a random direction, accidently stabbing one of our classmates even though she won't ever say sorry for that. She flicks her long black hair and sighs, sitting back on her seat and take another sip from her little tea.

"Of course you wouldn't. I have such a soft heart to consider you as my boyfriend. Cheating on me would be preposterous, and only you would end up hurt. I'm glad we had this conversation." Well, she's right about one thing, and one thing only in this entire sentence. After that little display of public violence, things calmed down the way they should, but our classmates would still stare at us, sharing small gossips with each other and spread even more rumours. You would think for a second they would side with me after that little display of abuse and misery coming from us. Wel…

' _Did you hear that? He thought of cheating on Shirogane, what a loser…'_

 _'If he ever makes Yuki-sama cries, he's the one who'll cry next!'_

 _'How gross, cheating on a chick right in front of him, he's indeed the worst…'_

What can I say but Kuoh sucks…

The rest of classes pass around without much trouble. I mean, Yuki caught me spying under a girl's skirt, and she bit my neck, like really hard, for that, but after lunchtime, time passed like it was no one's problem. Boring lectures, killing stares from my classmates, playing with my pencil and; seeing a trio of idiots being chased by the Kendo club and then wrapped naked upside-down at the school flag for everyone to see. My little everyday life, which is, unfortunately far more complicated to explain to anyone, that's a fact. Looking at the scars at the back of my hand and palm, not to mention all of those bandages around my arms, it would be such a pain to explain to anyone… Doesn't mean I want to pass my entire existence just with her. Sigh, I need to find anyone who understands me, and quick…

End of classes, end of my turn as a normal student. Since I already finished my duties as the new guy and Yuki ain't here to bother me anymore, I guess I'll just storm back in that cute little bakery to buy some sweets for her and then straight back home. I wonder if this month's allowance will be enough for both that and to buy this week's Jump. Mom is busy on her business trip in Europe, she even forgot to transfer my allowance today, but no matter, I still have enough for that, those, and maybe some extras for cake and Jump. I passed around the perverted trio of idiots still hung up on the school's flag, completely ignoring their pleas for help and curses against me, and headed to the bakery shop. Nothing much here, besides the cakes, me and the cutie attendant who's around my age. I buy the cheapest chocolate strawberry shortcake they have around and, after trying to stare too much into the attendant's bosom and being shooed out of the store by her father, I guess that's enough for today's money. Cake on one hand, and my broken school material by the other, fortunately all of that training paid off, so I can carry those without much problem.

"Even so, it'd be nice to have someone helping me for all of that…" I lament to myself. I say all of those pompous things, yet carrying all of that are a pain. Honestly, at least this is all I have to do today, and all of my problems would be over now.

Or so I thought, because when I could finally reach home, the small but comfortable two-store place almost indistinguishable from the other houses in the neighborhood, I felt another presence coming towards me. This has been bugging me for the longest time, but since I moved here to Kuoh town this shadowy figure of a young man has been following me nonstop, from school all the way to my house, also by his side his black-furred, red-eyed puppy that is creepier than cute. He's no hobo because he's always wearing that expensive-looking coat and whatnot, nor a criminal since I always look this plain-looking for even the most desperate assaulter to attack, so what does he want from me? Maybe he's a faggot and wants my butt or something…

Y'know what? Since he has been following me since, I should at least see if he's really following me or this is just some crazy, unusual and downright absolute coincidence and nothing else, and then maybe resort to violence and break a few bones… But then again, how unnecessary that would actually be? Just imagine tomorrow's news about a highschooler who is going to prison for beating someone up for now reason? I would become a laughing stock later, not to mention Yuki would probably be pissed at me. What to do, what to do? Only one way to figure this dilemma? Flipping a coin and late decide. Heads, I go talk to him, tails, I tail out and try again tomorrow. I have nothing to worry, anyway, because… Luck always side with Kokuto Kurokami!

*FLIP!*

And then I flipped the small golden coin that mother gave me back from one of her trips from Ireland, and hoped for the best. I can still sense the stranger tailing me from a safe distance, so I have no worries regarding him coming too close before I can finish my coin flip. That piece of gold solemnly flew over my head shining its golden sides until it fell right in front of me, where I caught it with one hand and slapped on the back of the other. I uncovered my hand to see the results of my little gamble.

It landed on Heads.

…

"Sigh, well that sucks." I sighed not very on the mood to go talk with a stalker out of nowhere and maybe get molested or something, but a gamble is a gamble, and maybe I'll end this madness once and for all. After all, luck is always by my side. I dropped my briefcase and the cake from my hands gently on the ground and turned around to face my stalker. Whichever business he has or wants with me, I should take them on like an adult and only rely to ignorance once he pisses me off. Simple as that. "Now, Mr. Stalker, I know you have been following me, so could you please stop hiding and instead talk to me, because this is getting reall-…"

But when I turned around to face the possible stalker, instead I looked at the deserted street of the middle of the evening. Hah? What the hell? I could've sworn that bastard was behind me this whole time and if he moved I'd have known! Maybe he saw me moving a hit the road or something? But even so, I'd have heard him moving or something?

" _Kokuto Kurokami_. 17-years old, a high-school student at Kuoh academy and previously a student from Gekkoukan highschool but expelled over… Special circumstances. Lives mostly by himself since your mother Yozora Kurokami is always on trips for being a businesswoman and there is no formal record about who is your father… Until now." Shock! When I thought I could see myself free from all that freaky stuff, a strong voice echoes right behind me and my defenseless derriere! I flipped around and took a few steps back only to look at a dark-haired, grey-eyed guy who's taller and broader than me, despite looking just a few years older. Is this the guy who has been stalking me? And how does he know so much about me and mum? Don't tell me he's part of the Yakuza or something! "Well well, look at that. For being his son, you sure have quite a decent record, it almost makes me feel bad for following you around all this time. Sorry about that, Kokuto."

"W-Who are you? How do you know my name and where I live? You better start explaining yourself, I'm a green-belt in Karate and I read a lot of fighting manga." I say why taking a few drunken steps back and moving myself to an awkward defensive pose, like I'm ready to become a Kamen Rider or something. I'm more curious than alert though since this guy doesn't seem so bad up this close, but he has been stalking me for the past few days, so he must be dangerous to some degree. Instead, this dark guy just laughs under his breath and scratches the back of his head.

"Oh, right. I didn't introduce myself, my apologies." He laughs again, while the little dog to his feet shows itself from the shadows while he bowed down politely to me, making me ease my pose from before. "Hello, Kokuto. My name is Tobio Ikuse, I am part of a supernatural Organization of Fallen angels called Grigori, led by someone who, whatever you know him or not, is pretty close to you. Tell me, Kokuto Kurokami, do you know anything about your father?"

"My… _Father_?" I question him back. Not really, I don't know anything about my father, only that mother met him during one of her trips to Europe and stayed with him for a while until my grandfather fell sick so she had to come back to Japan to take care of him. As smart as she is, she didn't notice she was pregnant at the time and she never married him or anyone else for that matter, so I don't have a father in any way. Not that one would make a difference back then nor will make a difference now. However, this sounds a bit intriguing, not to mention he said something about a 'supernatural organization?'. I turn to this Ikuse fellow. "Not really. My mother never married him or anyone else later, so I don't have a father in any way. She also has no photos of him but she does say he was pretty handsome. Why you ask?"

"Oh, so you're like me. That's nice in a way. Also, sorry to hear that." He smiles and bows his head again, making me blush a little and scratch my cheek. He's too polite, wonder if he's one of those guys who get beat up a lot during school and get his lunch money stolen in the daily basis. He coughs a bit then turns to me. "But I'm not here to talk about this unfortunate subject: Kokuto Kurokami, you might believe me or not, but your father is _Azazel_ , the Governor General of the Fallen Angels, one of the Great Three Factions and the Leader of the institute I'm part of. Therefore, you, who has fallen angel blood in your veins, is a strong candidate to become a member of the Grigori."

"…"

"…?

…

"Eh? Could you repeat that, please?" I politely asked him, taking my time to absorb whatever he just said to me. Wait a minute, is this guy serious? Did he just say I'm part fallen angel or something, and that my father is named Azazel and is the leader of an organization? Maybe I didn't hear him correctly or something, maybe hanging out with Yuki has been messing up with my mind as of lately. He bows again.

"Oh, maybe that kind of information was too much for someone who's not used to that kind of stuff. I don't blame you, it was a shock for me too." He concludes, picking from inside his black coat instead a photo of a handsome, foreign man with black-blind hair, a badass goatee and a figure that imposes some kind of respect. Wair, didn't mother tell that the guy she loves was… Exactly like that? I looked at Ikuse, and after a quick nod, I understood that I could take the pics with me. "But what I'm saying it's true. Your father is the leader of the fallen angel faction and the Governor General of the Grigori. I know it must hard for you to believe, but this is the whole truth."

I turn to him one last time, then to the photo on my hand, to this Azazel person. I should be thinking that Ikuse is crazy, a complete lunatic who reads too much cheap light novels to come up with that stuff, but for some reason, something inside compels me to agree and believe him no matter how ludicrous that sounds.

I always felt that I was different from the others and, honestly, I wouldn't be surprised to know that mother don't know about this either, her lover and boyfriend being a supernatural fallen angel and the leader of a whole organization and race. Still, this is too much for me to handle, to discover that I'm not 100% human, it's almost frightening to think about it, and maybe those bad feelings I feel around those girls back in my school, Gremory, Himejima and Shitori, might not be misplaced at all. There are so many questions now, yet so little time, and I doubt I'd like to know their answers...

Still, there is **one thing** that I should know before anything else regarding that... I turn back to Ikuse, and he looks back at me. Then, I ask:

"So, this Azazel person... Left any _inheritance_ for me?"

"Eh? N-No, not any that I know of."

"Then I don't really care about this." I stuck my tongue out for him and tossed that lousy photo out of my sight after losing all my interest from before just like that, making Ikuse hum in surprise and then catch it in midair. Yeah, fallen angel or not, my father or not, if he doesn't have anything for me, then it's not really my problem. I picked my stuff up again and picked my keys to open my house. "Sorry Mr. Ikuse, but since he has nothing stored for me, then I won't bother either. Come back with a PS4 or a new I-Phone from him and maybe I'll consider talking about it more..."

"Hey! Kokuto, are you serious?" He asks me, but that aside, I'm completely oblivious to him now. I didn't even look back at him, just closed my door and walked into the empty home in order to heat up the bath and maybe prepare some dinner. I didn't even take the first step when I heard knocks on the door. "Kokuto! Kokuto, let's talk, this is very important for both you and the Grigori! I can sense that you have a Sacred Gear too, that's also very important for you to know and master!"

"Just go Away, Mr. Ikuse. I'm a high schooler with too much to do and so little time to spare. Unless you bring me a plasma Tv or an acceptance letter from Tokyo-U, don't even bother stalking me again. Now please go away before I call the cops on you." I say by the other side of the door, and after a while all the knocks ceased, and I could hear him just walk away from my front door. I'm slorry, Mr. Ikuse, but I don't have time to deal with this stuff, and having a parent or not doesn't make a difference neither then or now. But then I saw something quite strange happen right before my eyes: Aome kind of freaky magical circle materialized right in front of me and, jumping off from it, there he was, Mr. Ikuse and his loyal black dog, right at my home. I can't believe it... He's really a supernatural agent of a sorts! But instead of showing my surprise, I only lifted a finger at him. "Please get out of my house Mr. Ikuse before I call the cops. Whatever magical or not, this is still home invasion, and trust me I can sue every last yen out of you."

"Just give me some time to set this through, okay? Please. This is more important than you think, and I promise that I'll leave as soon as possible, but for now just listen to me." He says in a calm tone, but I can sense that he's oozing a kind of cold and dangerous aura. Now I know this feeling is supernatural at its core. I can also feel that, if he wanted it, he would've dragged me by the hairs just with stumps and took me to my father by force. This guy... Is seriously too nice. I sighed, not point now.

"Sigh... Would you mind waiting a bit? I'll prepare some tea for you, then we can talk." I sighed back taking my ass to the kitchen to prepare some tea for us and signing for him to sit down back in the living room, as he takes a relieved sigh and walks his dog with him. I just hope that pup doesn't shit all over the place. Just by thinking about it, I can feel a small presence around me, walking by my side from a small fog. I look down, and there he is, the black cat that can magically appear and dissapear at will. I smiled at him. "Hey there, Tama. You liking or not, we have guests, so behave. Although they won't be able to see you, I guess."

The little cat just purred before dissapearing again in the shadows. I wonder if this is that Sacred Gear Mr. Ikuse was talking about, would make sense. But for now, tea it is, and as soon as explained, as soon he can leave me alone..

Little did I know at the time, this was only the beginning of a series of other bizarre events in my life...

* * *

 **Please tell me what you think. R &R.**


	2. Lucky you

**Wow guys! That's for all the reviews, favorites and follows! This is my first fanfic so i'm glad that despite not having all that muich reviews, it was still good enough to receive all of that and be read by almost 1k people. I promise to continue to do my best on this site and this story! :)**

 **DxD belongs to Ichiei Ishibumi and all it's respective magazines.**

 **explications for Kokuto's sacred gear by the end of the chapter!**

* * *

 _ **Azazel** , the Emissary Goat of God, the leader of the fallen angels and General Governor of the Grigori, is a man of many lovers, but few loved ones. Aside from his companions and cohorts, his formerly divine heart is shaded in darkness and depravity, overcast by lust, desire and arrogance, typical of a Fallen angel…_

 _For him, women are nothing but dolls of flesh for him to satisfy his own ego and lust._

 _And one of these dolls, Yozora Kurokami, is the one to become Kokuto's mother. A Keio alumni and a businesswoman known for her intelligence and sagacity, however inversely proportional to her common sense and ability to rationalize like a normal person would. In one of her business trips, the two lovers crossed paths and entwisted themselves in nights of pleasure and drinks. For a while, such nights of delight and lust lasted, but it was only after a few months that Yozora received a phone call from a hospital about her father and his withering health, and how he wanted to see her in his last moments. Family, of course, was something that Yozora knew all too well unlike Azazel, and as such, she had to leave her lover, without even knowing of his true nature, and go back to Japan. Unknown to either of them, she was already pregnant with his child, a fallen angel/human hybrid that would be later be known as Kokuto Kurokami, the black blade of the Black God…_

 _Yozora never married either Azazel or another man, and she had no other relatives after that fatidic night at the hospital, which no matter the efforts of the doctors, they weren't enough to save the life of the until now patriarch of the Kurokami family, who despite such, passed away content, knowing that his precious daughter was by his side on his last moments. As such, Yozora spent all of her familiar and maternal love on his little precious Kokuto, the only family she had, spoiling him rotten with toys, gadgets, trips and other things kids his age could only imagine. Inheriting a large sum after his grandfather's death plus the constant gains from his mother's job, Kokuto grew up without a single care in the world, happy and satisfied…_

 _However, that kid with a constant smile on his face is no more, and now with a constant frown on his dark eyes and slouch no teenager of his age should have, Kokuto Kurokami walks the earth with no objectives per se, no drives or ambitions, something that might surprise one that knows about his origins. He just wants to live the rest of his life without a single worry, go to a good college and maybe marry a sweetheart and have a son. He has no ambitions, no drives or desires as for now, neither for women, prestige or fanciness. Only maybe money and the desire to continue living his life without a single worry…_

 _If anything, his **greatest ambition** … Is to continue his ambitionless life at all cost!_

…

…

"So, let me get this straight: I am the son of a fallen angel. And not just any fallen angel, but one of the first ones that have fallen from the grace of the God of the Bible and now is the leader of his own faction which was in a threeway war against the other factions composed of his fellow angels and devils, and the General Governor of an supernatural organization known as Grigori. And because of that, not only I get to have at least a portion of his fortune once he croaks, but apparently this mixed blood of mine makes me pretty interesting for the other factions, not to mention that, since I am part human, it also allows me to possess a Sacred Gear, which are divine weapons created by God in order to help humans to perform miracles or something. Is that all, or is there something else that I need to know?"

"No, Kokuto. That is pretty much it. I mean, if you want to know more, just follow me back to Grigori."

And here I am in such a surreal situation that I cannot believe I didn't drink something funny during lunch or that Yuki just poisoned me for eating her foie gras and now I'm hallucinating all of that before being faced with my utter and painful demise. This guy, Tobio Ikuse, just claimed that I am the son of a fallen angel, and not just any fallen angel, but one of the first to fall from the grace of a Christian God and is now in a threeway war between his people, devils and angels, the three known as the Three Factions. Also, his little pup is no ordinary little pup either, but a thing called a Sacred Gear, a weapon created by that same God in order to help humans to perform miracles, and his own is a special kind known as Longinus, with the power to destroy the world or something. This is so surreal indeed, makes me feel like I'm one of those cheap light novels, only that I don't have a harem of a sorts. But something about Mr. Ikuse compels me to believe him, since his aura is also very unusual, unlike anything I've ever seen…

He keeps telling me to follow him back to the Grigori, and honestly, I am kinda curious as to how that would play out. According to him, the Grigori is one of the most advanced faculties of technological development in the Supernatural world, and not only I would be able to meet my long lost father, I would also be able to train with the best of the best and discover the new layers this world can offer to me, not to mention he can sense that I have a sacred gear as well, and that I can master that too with the right person. I must say, it's a very tempting offering, and I have no reason to distrust me since he just showed me that magic is real. I have nothing but gain in this deal, and once this is over, my life as a human would cease, and I'd be able to see myself away from all those things I dislike so much…

 _Kuoh academy_ and my _brainless classmates_ …

 _Boring lectures_ with _boring teachers_ …

A _common house_ in a common neighborhood with common problems…

No more _bullying_ or other _jealousy_ attacks because of my relationship with my not!girlfriend…

And my **not!girlfriend**.

I only have gains in this whole ordeal, and if I accept it now, I can leave all those things behind and finally meet my long-lost father.

…

… I turned to Mr. Ikuse.

"Mr. Ikuse. You did say that I would be able to meet my father and know more about myself, right?" I said tilting my head to a side and taking a sip out of my green tea on the rock cup. For that, Mr. Ikuse nods. "Also, I would be able to discover and control and even master the Sacred Gear I supposedly have, am I correct? All I need to do is to say 'yes', right? No loans, no money involved, I just need to say yes, right?"

"Yep, that's all did and done." He says with a kind smile, taking a sip put of his own tea. "Azazel was quite surprised as well to know that he has a son like that considering that none of the women of his harem were able to bore him an heir. But all things considered, he'd be more than happy to meet and talk to you, and talk about your mother and those kinds of things. Don't worry, he's a pretty affable man despite his position and I'm positive you w-…"

"I'm sorry, Mr. Ikuse, but I will have to refuse the offer, and ask you to leave me alone from now on."

"…"

"…?"

"What?" That was his only response after I cut him mid-sentence only to finish that conversation with that response, his mouth hanging agap in surprise and a little bit of shock, his little pup Sacred Gear-thing having a similar reaction, while I leaned myself on the sofa. "Excuse me, did you just say 'no'?"

"Yes. I don't want to go to this Grigori place nor meet this Azazel guy, regardless if he's really my father or not." I turned to him and blinked a few times in order to make myself clear as day, but apparently even that wasn't enough for him to completely sink that in, his expression not changing in the slightest.

Yes, that is my final answer to that. I don't really care who or what my father is, and it's not like he missed until now, from since I was a baby until my teenage years. Even if it all her doing, my mother was enough to teach and take care of me, she would always give whatever I wanted, so I really never felt that I missed that much without a father of a sorts.

Not to mention, for the last 17-years I saved quite a bit of money from all the Father's days or other holydays I were supposed to spend with him. And since my mother was always away, the teacher would always skip me during 'bring your parent to talk' day while I could only cringe of how false-excited other parents were with their lives. And ever since I started to date Yuki, I'm glad that I don't have a father to have 'the talk' with and suffer from second-hand embarrassment from a man who clearly sees his own past in pink-shaded glasses…

You might think I actually hate this Azazel guy. Far from it, I can't hate someone I've never met nor want to. I actually… Don't care about him at all. He might be my father, but in the end, he's just the guy who impregnated my mother and that's it. I didn't need him then, I can probably live without him now.

As for this Grigori place… That sounds like a lot of work. It does sound interesting and quite exciting place to go, but the moment I start to think of all the training and practice I'll have to do it just because of my faint link with Azazel is already exhausting me to the core. After all, I already grew used to my life as a student, as unpleasant as it is, and the fact that I want to live a very normal life, get a job, get married, have kids and die either by a heart attack, a stroke or someone stabbing me to escape a debt. To think I'll have to abandon all of that security for a chance to meet other people and supernatural stuff… It's not a place for me, nor will ever be.

So that's my final answer: I don't want to be part of the Grigori, I don't to meet my father. I just want to continue my simple little life without a care in the world.

"Wait, wait, wait. Kokuto, are you hearing what you're saying? Am I hearing things right? You don't want to meet your father?" Yet still he insists in talk to me, apparently not having an idea how to deal with this. I bet he was expecting me to say 'yes' or 'hell yeah, let's go!' after discovering my heritage like a cheap light novel protagonist would, but I think that my answer of mine would be indeed quite unexpected regardless. "Nor you want to be part of the Grigori? But why? I thought you would be excited to know you father is a fallen angel and that he wants to meet you again! Like I said, Azazel is waiting to meet you as well and talk about you."

"I'm sorry if I'm not into your expectations, Mr. Ikuse, but I seriously have no reason or desire to meet or talk to my father after all this time." I said scratching my cheek with a finger, a bit embarrassed for breaking his expectations, as he hums in confusion. "I mean, my mother never had any problem raising me, and a father figure never actually missed me. I don't drink, I don't smoke, I didn't break any law and only had that argument with the Pachinko owner since he says I'm too young to gamble. So yeah, I have no reason to want to talk with this Azazel person since I grew up without him just fine. As for the Grigori… It just sounds like a lot of work, and I rather live my little life as high-school student than deal with all that mess. So yeah, I'm not interested, sorry to disappoint you."

"…"

"Also, if I suddenly disappear, my (not-)girlfriend will have to deal with her stalkers and creepers, and that would make me feel bad in the long run." I mumbled under my breath by turning my gaze elsewhere. Yeah, fake or not, Yuki's my first girlfriend and leaving her to herself would be quite a dick move, and I'm not my mother.

I'm neither my father nor mother; that is something quite sad to realize for someone my age…

"Is there nothing that can change your mind, Kokuto? I won't force you or anything, but please think this through a bit, the Grigori would be missing quite the asset without you." Oh my God, now he's seriously starting to piss me off. I know that he can level the floor with me with that Longinus of his and I was kinda feeling bad for breaking the expectations of someone so polite and gentle like him, but this conversation is really getting on my nerves, so much that I want to toss this tea right onto his face and run away as fast as possible. I hate when I have to repeat myself, it feels like I'm talking to an idiot. "The son of our Governor general with seemingly endless potential due to his roots, even more than I can feel you have a Sacred Gear, you would be quite an enforcer for the forces of Grigori, not to mention… With all of that, I wouldn't be that hard for you to get yourself a _harem_."

"Ew, gross."

"…"

"I mean, harem, as in, a group of lovers to myself that I could love and sleep around? No, thank you." I dismissed the harem idea with a hand wave, and his disbelief could only grow with my words. A harem, eh? No, thank you, I already know how a single lover can mess with you around and that is already pretty tiresome on my end, to imagine a bunch of those around me and doing the same thing… I'm already feeling a bit sick just by thinking about it. "I already have a girl and she's a huge pain in my ass, I'm not that much of an M to imagine myself with more of those. Besides, trying to bargain with me with girls? How old do you think I am, Mr. Ikuse? I'm not in a middle-schooler who steals porn magazines."

"…"

"…?"

"Y'know, if it wasn't for your aura and scent, I would now seriously be doubting your connection to Azazel, Kokuto."

He thinks just because I'm Azazel's son I'm just like him? That's a crude reasoning. People died because of that logic, too.

"Is there… Anything I can do for you to make you reconsider, even a bit?" He repeats, and in order to not punch his pretty face all the way from the back of his neck, I took a deep sigh and turned my gaze elsewhere. I'm not interested at all, how many times do I have to say that! But dismiss him just like that would be really rude, so maybe I can humour him a little chance. Besides… Curiosity is also enticing me to know about this Azazel guy since he apparently is very rich too. I picked from my pocket a certain small golden coin and lifted to his eyes so he can take a closer look.

"Okay, okay, fine. Let's do it like that. As you could've guessed, despite my views, I'm actually quite a gambling freak. I play a lot of games during middle school, had to change high-schools because of some cheaters and I hate the fact I can't get into the Pachinko parlors and get my own money. So let's put this whole discussion in a place where no Gods or devils or fallen angels can intervene: Into luck!" I said, flipping the coin a few times on my hands as Mr. Ikuse sighed in realization. Let's put my fate into the hands of luck, and so, whatever the result, I shall follow it without a single question asked. However, I expect the same from him, as a decent human being. "Did you know, Mr. Ikuse? If you add ' _luck_ '( 運) to ' _life_ '( 命), you get ' _destiny_ '(運命). Therefore, this game of luck shall decide my fate. Is that okay for you? A good game is always what I need for a great pus-…!"

*GRAB!*

"Ngh…!" But before I could even finish my sentence, Mr. Ikuse came around to reach for me and grab firmly my wrist, making me letting go of my golden coin which rolled away from me. I looked back at him, and even with all the shadows casted upon his eyes, he still maintained a calm and composed look, only now oozing a dangerous and uneasy aura.

"Of course, of course I can take this your way. But only if I'm the only one flipping the coin, one of mine, of course." He says, making me sweat profusely. Damn it, did he notice that? No, it's impossible, no one has been ever be able to detect it before! Before I could say anything, he picked my fallen coin and flipped it himself! Before it could reach the floor, *SLASH!*, that little dog of his made a flip in midair and cut my coin into two! Nothing wrong in losing around a 100 yens worth of money, but what distraught me the most was the two fallen tiny pieces of magnet inside of them. I grunted under my breath as he turned to me. "Don't be surprised by finding out, Jin could sense some magnetism coming from that coin of yours, and I'm quite acknowledgeable about the waves and energy magnets like that can produce. It wasn't that hard to figure that was something rigged about that coin."

"Kh…"

"Not to mention… Those crannies and knots on your thumb and index finger, and just in one hand, too. Something tells me that someone has quite a record about coin-tossing, isn't that right?" He says also pointing at his own hand to show my own injuries that I got practicing day and night in order to always get the right side of coin. I can no longer hide it, I simply sighed and lowered my head against his grasp and eyes. He grins and let out a small smile. "Pachinko and slots machines… Are pretty hard to cheat on too, right? So I'd figure you would also try to play one of those on me. Sadly, I've already met people like you before, they were not easy to figure it out either. So, let's play, Kokuto."

"Tch. Okay. You have a coin with you?" I said, defeated, lifting both my hands to show that I no longer have any more tricks on my sleeves, not anymore after he discovered my little copout, and without losing a second, he brings with him a golden coin as well, as I can see that is also foreign money. Before he could make a flip, though, his dog named Jin jumped on the table between us and looked deep into my eyes, then turned back to Mr. Ikuse. What is he doing, trying to see if I have any other tricks on me now? No, not now.

"Okay then, now that we have no other tricks on our hands, as you said, let 'luck' decides on your 'destiny', Kokuto." He says, and I could only bit my lower lip. "Just so we're clear, this will be a single toss. Only one call and nothing else, this goes for me as well: I will go away if the call is yours and I'll leave the coin as a warranty for my word, okay?"

"Tch. Whatever. Luck is always by the side of Kokuto Kurokami, anyway. Regardless of who tosses the coin… Victory is already decided." I said to him with determination, and as expected he could only draw an uneasy smile on his lips like what I just said was a stupid thing. Little did he know, he already lost. "I call _Heads_."

"So _tails_ it is for me!" He says. "When then, Kokuto! Let your destiny be decided by the hands of Lady Luck!"

And then, without a single moment lost, Tobio Ikuse flipped the golden coin on his fingers and let the rest on the hands of fate and luck! The tilting sound echoed throughout the entire room as the golden shine flew all around us. No sound, no shadow or movement, it looked like the entire place froze in time as the coin above us would shine its golden colours like a blazing Sun. And as expected, like one would, my entire life from now on relies on that single object. Mr. Ikuse also was looking deeply into the flipping coin in midair, silent as I am, his face doesn't show, but he's as eager as me, not surprising since this is also toying with the accomplishment of his mission. In the end, said coin fell onto the table with a single *TING!*, and then rolled around as if it was itself playing with us. Well, no matter the way or cost, because by the end of this toss, he already l-…!

 ***TING!***

"…!"

"Ah."

…

And it ended… On _Heads_.

"…"

"…"

…

"L-L- **Lucky~** ⋆ **!"** I declared, jumping myself from my seat and doing a pose of complete and utter victory! Hahah! Agent of the supernatural or not, I won! No contest, no doubt! Luck has indeed sided with Kokuto Kurokami! By the other side, as his dog starts to whine for the absolute defeat, Mr. Ikuse could only give himself a bitter smile of defeat, graciously acceptance his status as a total loser in today's show! Yes, indeed, sink in your own mediocrity, if there's anything Kokuto Kurokami loves more than a quiet life, is seeing the utter expression of defeat of people who think they're hot shit and try to order him around! No supernatural, no fallen angel, no general governor tells me what to do! Nobody tells Kokuto Kurokami what to do as long as he has Luck by his side, ALWAYS!

…

Ah, I'm overacting again. Phew, deep breath, Kokuto, deep breath. You're not like that, and remember the last time you did that and you had to be hospitalized for an entire week. Very well, at least he was of goods sports and is accepting his defeat as one should. If there's one thing better than a good sports is a good loser. They know their place… Including me, of course.

"Oh well, guess this is what happens when you grow so careless. I lost, and as promised, I will leave and I won't bother you anymore. That's a pity, the Grigori will indeed lose such a powerful asset." He laments to himself, probably trying again to buy some sympathy for me, all dying on deaf ears. Instead, he stands up himself, cleans up his clothes and signs for his dog, which was also kinda down itself, to follow him back to the entrance. As a good host, I accompany him all the way through and watched for him to put on his shoes and open the door to him. Before he left, however, he picked something from his pocket and passed to me. It was a black card with a really freaky circle on it. "But in case you change your mind or want to talk and know anything else, anything at all, don't be afraid to call me. I'll stay in Japan for a while so I will always be by an earful or whatnot. I might not look like, but I like to think I can be pretty reliable! Also… I bet that, since you know about your origins and the new ways of the world now, you will be meeting a lot of people like me and seeing your surroundings in a different light."

"Are you threatening me?" I asked, and he laughs nervously with a friendly handwave.

"Not at all, not at all." He says, finally reaching for the knob and going out of my house, hopefully forever. Before he could do it, though, he turned around to face me one more time and chuckled. "But It won't be a stretch to say that we shall meet again, for either of our volitions, both of neither. Until then… I bid you my goodbyes. Say goodbye to him too, Jin."

And after one last sorrowful and angry yelp from that little mutt, both him as his dog left my house without a second wasted, leaving me alone with my own thoughts. So yeah, that was a thing, but in the end, by the winds of luck and destiny, I won't be seeing my father for a while… And I'm totally okay with that.

Azazel, Azazel, what kind of name is that anyway? Sounds like one of those carbonated drinks, and to think I have him as a father. But no matter, it's not like anything will change from now on just because I know I have a father and he's a fallen angel, only that my mother shag a supernatural creature without even knowing, which doesn't surprise me, that airhead mom of mine. I wonder if that means I have wings or can create weapons of light or something, but I won't be doing anything with those either since they can't help me cheat on Pachinko or charge someone for a ride. It'll save a hell of money on transportation though, so maybe I can give it a try later…

Ah, whatever, it's not anything like that would be useful for me. Like I said, I just want to live my little life without surprises or inconveniences, and as long as I have luck by my side, this lifestyle shall prevail. I take my way to the living room and then notice that coin we played with is still there, all alone on top of the table. Oh right, he did say he'd leave the coin as warranty for out little match. **Lucky** **me,** I guess. Yes, luck is all mine…

"And as I said, luck is always by the side of Kokuto Kurokami. Isn't that right, Tama?" I asked as I picked the coin from the table, and from the small shadow of such, emerge the little cat that apparently is my Sacred Gear, a big red "50%" now appearing on his furred black forehead. Heheh, like I said, that match was decided before it could even start. I flipped that coin one more time as Tama walked onto my shoulders and I rested myself sit on the sofa, silently commemorating my own victory. "I don't need any tricks as long as I have you, Tama. After all, you're my lucky star."

And the cat purred for me while snuggling on my cheek and then disappearing onto the black mist as always. Heh, I'm sorry, Mr. Ikuse, but you were so fixated on my own tactics you didn't even notice Tama giving all the luck I needed to win this bet, your loss I guess. It's not cheating if you don't get caught, right?

So, I guess that luck is really on my side this time!

* * *

 _'Surprise, surprise! Kurokami is asleep again...'_

 _'Is everything he ever does in class, sleeping during lectures, all alone. It's a bit gross, too, even for a transferred guy...'_

 _'It's a shame, too. He certainly is cute.'_

 _'Ew~, don't say that. He might hear you and want to talk to you...'_

 _'Creepy~...'_

Ah, shut up~. It's not like I don't want to have friends, being the transferred guy around is hard, you know. Besides, if you guys have time to talk like that behind my back, then come here and talk to me, damnit.

I can't believe it has been almost a month since I transferred here in Kuoh Academy, yet I have no friends to speak to, nor any professors seems to like me all that much, and my popularity as the 'new guy' vanished in the blink of an eye, and I end up just as the freaky boy who sleeps during classes. Not that I care much for that, but being talk about in whispers piss me off a bit, specially by girls. Ugh...

But no matter, no matter. The lesser they know about me, the better. I already have my fair share of problems to deal with, things they wouldn't even consider in their normal lives. I just need to play this persona until I finish high school, and then I'll deal with them without the system holding me back. But come to think of it, this school, this particular school, I notice it has a very distinctive scent roaming around. Something like... Scorch, or maybe something burning. I wonder why, though…

But whatever, it's not my problem, it won't be my problem. She said to hang low as for now and only act in case of danger, so this is what I'm doing. I'm kinda tired anyway, so I won't bother as for now. Just gonna hang low, take a nap, look at the passing time and hear the mean whispers coming from my classmates. This is my life now, and I couldn't ask for anything differen-...

 ***BAM!***

"Gh...!"

"Good afternoon, Kokkun." And I spoke too soon. When I was about to take my daily nap on the lap of my seat, there she comes again, storming inside my classroom and pulling a chair for herself to sit in front of me, the sound of her lunchbox hitting right next to me. Ugh, not her, not now, not again. Without even taking my cheek off the chair, I toss my stare upwards, and there she is: Long and smooth black hair, equally dark eyes and a ghastly pale skin that it looks like it shines. It looks like an angel, but it is just my 'girlfriend' Shirayuki Shirogane, who couldn't be further from an angel but a devil itself. Just my luck, is it lunchtime already? She sits in front of me, unwrapping her lunchbox. "I see that you have been sleeping during classes yet again. How shameful, to think my boyfriend would behave so rebelliously, it's almost laughable, I must say. But of course, I wouldn't laugh at you."

"Uhh~... Leave me alone, Yuki. I had a lot of work yesterday, not to mention in order to balance things out I end up losing around 1,000 yens and I stepped on dog shit on the way to school." I sighed to her as she took a bite from her beef sushi and offered me a piece of salmon in return.

"I have no idea how of what you're talking about, and honestly despite being your girlfriend, I rather not." She simply replies without even looking at me, eyes closed to concentrate on munching on her own piece of meat. Yeah, all's well when it ends well, I guess. I picked my own lunchbox and started to eat the rest of the riceballs and grilled steak I prepared yesterday with some Calpis Water. "I did however buy that new game and all the DLCs it has. Maybe we can both play it together sometime… Online of course."

"Sounds great, but I don't have that game with me. I only got Street Fighter." I told her. Her eyes suddenly turned a bit sour, but in the end she just sighed for herself and took a sip out of her tea from the thermic bottle.

"Then I'll buy a copy for you. You know that money is no problem for me." She sticks her tongue out for me and taps my head gently, like she wants to pat me or something. So she's gonna buy a game for me, that's really nice, but being by this side I can only assume she's doing that just to feed her own ego. But whatever, it looks like I'll have my first gift. Gotta remember to buy something nice for her as well, even though she's not really my girlfriend. "You really are lucky to have such a gentle and pious lady such as myself for a girlfriend. You should be thankful with all of your heart, as I am for having a boyfriend such as you. Although those things hardly balance."

"Thanks, Yuki."

"No problem, Kokkun."

Ah, yes. My everyday life without a single care in the world, which will repeat itself without any warnings. A secure and stable existence, typical for a highschooler like me. I couldn't wish for anything else, even with all the bullying and the fact that I don't really have a girlfriend, this life isn't so bad.

It isn't so bad at all…

"Hey Kokkun, did you hear about it?" And snapping me back from my reverie, Yuki called for me by putting another piece of meat inside my mouth. The surprise made me cough, but fortunately I had time to react and bite that piece of meat before she could choke me with it!

"N-Not really." I said, munching on that beef for a while before gulping it down my system, and coughing a bit more to give myself some air after that attack. Besides, she's being too vague, something I quite dislike about her. "Also, care to elaborate a bit more? I can assure that a million things can happen around the world in one night, so trying to pinpoint one just by your is a bit too hard…"

"Huh, you seriously don't know? You really are a hapless one, Kokkun. If it wasn't for your super girlfriend over here, I fear that your stay in Kuoh wouldn't be short of frightening and boorish, just like you." She declared in and out loud for everyone to see, and to top it all off, also stroke a pose. I can already feel the visual darts piercing my back from all the guys and girls in my classroom, so I can expect quite a 'treat' in my locker shoes by the end of the day. No problem fighting those, I'm afraid, it'll only makes things worse. Instead, she turned to me. "Very well, let me tell you what happened: Believe it or not, Tyrion Lannister, one of the most dangerous criminals in Japan, escaped prison by the start of this week."

"Eh…?" I could only tilt my head to a side. 'Tyrion Lannister'? Isn't that the name of that character from that epic series of books 'A song of Ice and Fire'? Not that I read those, but I heard that the Tv show is pretty popular as well. But back to business, how one of the characters could possibly be incarcerated just to escape prison like that? It's not like his actor is a bad person either, so how come? I turned to her once more. "Yuki, are you hallucinating or something? How come a fictional character come to life like that?"

"It's not the character, you idiot. It's the murderer named after that character." She flips her fingers on my forehead in retaliation before resuming the tale of that character. " _Nobody knows from where he came from or how he's called, so they opted to nicknamed him Tyrion Lannister because he has dwarfism. However, unlike his height, his criminal records are quite extensive: Ever since he started to commit crimes by the age of 20, he has tortured, mangled, killed and eaten over 288,000 people all over the world, and I believe that he would've already killed over a million people by now if the authorities didn't have catch him by the age of 21. They tried to execute him numerous times for all those heinous crimes, but no matter the methods or how many times they tried, they could not kill him by any means. So instead he was condemned to live in prison for the rest of his life. However, before he could finish his first month in prison, he escaped from a maximum security warden by killing all the guards, guarddogs and cellmates and building a boat out of the corpses. He was last time seen by a fishing boat crossing all the way to the Japanese bay. Which means he could be still around here, or maybe he's already here in Japan._ "

"…"

"…?"

"Ominous" Quite ominous, really. But real talk, that story is so bizarre I can barely a straight face for that. What the hell, was I supposed to be afraid of that story? Sorry, but I think I just lost some braincells for all that talk. I'll just google it around just to be sure later, though. I waved that event under the rug as I keep on eating my omelet without a care in the world. "So, that aside, have you been watching any good series as of lately? Read any good mangas or something?"

"I picked up that cooking manga from that porn artist. It's pretty good, too bad it makes me hungry as well." She pouts taking a bite again from her delicious rice. "But I can always ask for my maids to make all those dishes and maybe teach me how to do some myself. So that's pretty good on my end."

"Huh, that's nice." I declare. "Maybe you can prepare a dish for me one of those days."

"I'm not your maid, Kokkun. How rude." She talks back with a hand in front of her mouth to fake hurt, although I can see from here a light blush decorating her cute cheeks. Oh, she can be cute when she wants. That's a shame, it means she's like that on purpose. "But I wouldn't mind dating a picnic for both of us. It would be fun, just… Let me cook for you. I already ate your food, and it's really disgusting."

"Hahah, I'll think about it." I answered, and so we resumed our lunch together.

She might be my not!girlfriend, but I'd be lying if I said that I'm not enjoying this a bit. I wonder if having a real relationship would be something like that, and honestly, I wouldn't mind without the constant cuts from her silver tongue. And so, my life as a normal high school student resumes…

However, I just can't shake the feeling that something, or rather, someone, is _watching_ me...

 _ **To be continued...**_

* * *

 **Sacred Gear Bio:**

- **Name:** Tama( **Real name** : Fortuna Ataraxia)

- **Type:** Mid-class Sacred Gear

- **Ability:** Luck/Misfortune manipulation

- **Overview:** Kokuto's Sacred Gear, which awoke sometime during his childhood, giving him incredible luck and at the same time incredible misfortune. Fortuna Ataraxia, later renamed 'Tama', is a Sacred Gear shaped like a small black cat that has the power to 'balance' Kokuto's luck/misfortune ratio on command, meaning he can wish for an desire outcome for an event at the cost of 'Fortune points' which appears on Tama's forehead, which will later affect Kokuto negatively late in order to 'balance' it out, the bigger the change the more points it'll accumulate; the inverse also happening as Kokuto can save 'misfortune points' for a boost of luck for some time later. For controlling something as abstract as 'Luck', while some are able to sense the aura of a Sacred Gear around Kokuto, they cannot sense when the Sacred Gear is being used, giving him also an advantage for the element of surprise.

However, Fortuna Ataraxia cannot affect things bigger than itself such as destiny, future or Gods. Moreover, it is useless in occasions where all the odds are against its master since it cannot warp reality to such extend. Being a semi-sentient Sacred Gear, 'Tama' can also stop working on its own volition, but It'll always try to defend it's master.


	3. Hanged deadman, part 1

**Again, thanks for all the support and reviews, likes and follows! This time, Kokuto finds himself wrapped in another net of problems. I hope I can write this little arc a little better and maybe characterize my character a bit too. I can sense that maybe he wasn't all that well-liked in the reviews. Oh well, I'll try my best regardless.**

 **DxD belong to ishibumi and its respective magazines.**

 **Don't forget to R &R. Thank you.**

* * *

End of classes, another uneventful day for a loner like me but those difficult classes and death stares. Being the new guy however, the teachers reserved some afterclass chores for me to do, and so, here I am, cleaning my own classroom and desks for the next day, all by myself since nobody wants to hang around me, my clothes all bleached thanks to a prank from my seniors. Ah, no matter, I'm so used to this, it doesn't bother me anymore, doesn't mean I like it.

But here I am yet again, all by myself, dusting the room and getting rid of all the gum under the desks and drawings on them, specially mine since its all covered in such wonderful words such as 'pig', 'rapist', 'creeper', 'go die' and 'scum'. I'm almost done here, however, when I was about to end my shift here, I could feel it. I don't know why, maybe because of this new fallen angel hybrid thing, but I feel it, that particular scent coming from a direction, the scent of something sweet yet eerie, I don't know how to explain it better, I just feel it. And just like last time, I could see three silhouettes walking this direction. sharpen my line of vision, and as expected, as I could see them, the three Madonna's of Kuoh academy, walking side by side, attracting the attention of all of the students that were not too busy sending me death glares…

 **Rias Gremory** , the 1# Idol of Kuoh academy, the most beautiful girl around with her perfect measurements, kind demeanor and, most importantly, her long crimson hair, that shines its ruby colours across the corridors of Kuoh academy, and also the president of the Mysterious Occult Research club.

 **Akeno Himejima** , the second idol of Kuoh academy and apparently Gremory's secretary. The kind, easy-going, mellow girl of gentle smile and even bigger assets, considered by many the ultimate onee-san, her black hair and gentle eyes beaming all over the school. For some reason, the scent I'm picking from her is specially different, I wonder why.

And the third and last, and therefore more unimportant, **Sona Shitori** , the president of the student council and the third most popular girl in here, her strict rules, non-nonsensical demeanor yet rational and calculist mind makes her endearing for us, not to mention she has this intellectual charm around her which compensates the lack of assets her two other peers have in plentiful, quite an achievement, really.

The three madonnas of Kuoh academy, walking through the corridors and picking all the attention for themselves, including mine. Their wandering eyes, however, soon descend upon me, and like always, I drift my eyes away, trying to not make eye contact. This is bad, I know they're pretty girls, but if anyone catches me, one of the few guys in here with a girlfriend on top of that, hitting on one of the School's madonnas, they'll burn me at the stake even more. However, this might not be my lucky day, as Sona Shitori personally came closer to inspect on me.

"Kurokami, I see that the professors already assigned your chores." Her stern yet soothing voice reaches my ears like a cold whisper, and I couldn't help but blush a little. She's that powerful aura only the president of the student council could have, and that makes me a little nervous. "That's good. As a student of Kuoh, even if as a transferred one, it is our duty to make the school a proper place for our personnel. Everyone is doing their best, please don't forget that."

"Yeah, yeah, I got that, prez. I understand." I turn my face elsewhere since her stare its making me uncomfortable a little. She hums something under her breath, and with a quick peek, I see that her eyes got a little softer this time, but for some reason, it makes me nervous. Just… Avoid eye contact, maybe she'll go away. "Let me end here, then I'll go home."

"Kurokami, is there something you want to talk about?" I hear her call, and honestly, there are a lot of things I want to discuss about, but this place is just too crowded with people to even think of talking with her. I already have to deal with Yuki, please don't come any closer, prez. "As the president, you can discuss and even complain about anything in Kuoh you want. I want your stay here to be a pleasant one, so don't hesitate to say anything."

"I'm… I'm alright, prez. No need to worry about me." I laughed it off, as if laugh was the most painful thing a human could muster, praying that she would go away and leave me alone. In the end, another careless hum, and then a sigh of understanding, with me doing the same for that exact same reason.

"Very well, continue with a good Job, Kurokami, I'm counting on you. And remember that I'll be always available in case of problems or a game of chess." She comments. I actually hates chess, a game of strategy with no romance at all for the chances. Some say a chess game can be decided before even starting, and that's just irritating. But I wouldn't mind playing with her… Against my will, at least.

"Okay, prez. Now, please… Let me work." And then I didn't even see her leaving, but by the cold steps on the corridor, I assume she left with her other 'friends', and when I turned around, I was right, she just vanished from sight.

I sighed in relief, it's not like I don't want to talk with someone, anyone, during those lonely chore moments, but for my quick stay in Kuoh, I've learnt an important unspoken rule in Kuoh: nobody touches the idols of such, or just like any idol, you'll be cursed and everyone will hate you. No exceptions, even some teachers will start unmarking your name in the presence list just because they don't like your face.

That's not my case; of course, I'm just giving an example, no need to be so mad.

"Hey, Kurokami…"

"Yeah…?" And I was careless. The moment I turned around, an entire bucket of dirty water and gum fell onto the classroom's floor, ruining all of it for me. I look up, and those third-years were looking at me with such hateful eyes and hands carrying more and more dirt buckets, dumping them on my class. In the end, it didn't take much for the entire floor to be covered in moss and dirt.

"You missed a place." One of the spat on it, leaving with the others while they would mutter to themselves about me 'being a blackmail boyfriend', 'arrogant transferred student' and 'they know where my shoe-locker is'.

I sigh, what should I do now? It's already getting dark, and the classroom is filled with dirt and smells bad. I look at the floor, then at my reflection on it, and back to the seniors still walking around the corridors. My class is filled with buckets, and I still have this mop around me, what should I do… Sigh, as expected, better avoid drawing more attention here, so I just shrugged to myself and started moping the floor yet again, seeing my classmates avoiding and ignoring me to take their ways downstairs. Just another day at Kuoh academy…

What a day after yesterday. In one day I just discovered that I am the son of a fallen angel creature and honestly nothing changed. I still wake up in the morning, brush my teeth, prepare my meals, get pick up by the guys around, talk with Yuki, eat my lunch, listen to class(not really) and then chores. Did that actually happen yesterday? I picked the small golden coin and the black card that Mr. Ikuse left, and yeah, It happened alright. Sigh, I'm getting worked up over nothing, but now that I know, I have this strange suspicion behind my head that just doesn't go away. I wonder… How many people here in Kuoh academy, even in Kuoh town, have those Sacred Gears thing, or are supernatural creatures just like Azazel. Mr. Ikuse did say that there are other races around, so I wonder if there are any devils or angels walking here as well. Maybe Yuki can be a devil for what I know, or maybe the three Madonna's themselves? One of my professors, maybe? The director? The busty nice girl from the bakery? Or maybe her father? Is that pup that always follows me home a Sacred Gear? Or maybe…

I mentally slap myself silly to get out of that psychic dilemma. No, I'm thinking too much, and this is what Mr. Ikuse wants: he wants me to grow paranoid and fearful of my surroundings, and then offer me false hope by kind words and promises of protection, making me practically dance on his palm. Those last words of his, ' _you will be meeting a lot of people like me and seeing your surroundings in a different light'_ , are just to plant the seed of fear on my head until I no longer can trust my own shadow. He is a polite and patient guy, I'll give him that, but those kinds are the ones you should least trust around. Keep it together, Kokuto, this is just the paranoia that he wants you to fall into, and playing his game is the same thing as losing. Just keep your mind straight and away from diversions, and you will return to your normal routine before you know it, and that encounter with Mr. Ikuse will be just one passing memory that soon disappears, like when you let someone else sits on your seat on the subway or you see a pair of panties after a quick gust of wind…

Besides, I think devils, angels and other supernatural creatures have better things to do than go to a school as boring and uneventful as Kuoh.

As expected, my stay here lasted longer than I wanted to. Besides redoing all the work from before I had also to remove the gum on the floor besides the dirty and smelly water, and before I knew it, it was already dusk, and I instinctively yawned a little for all my hard work. I guess this is my time now, I can see the teachers already taking their ways out of classrooms and passing through the corridors, again they ignoring my existence entirely.

I sigh and pick up the rest of my stuff and the cleaning tools so I can put them away and go home already. The classroom is already clean, no need to worry about anything now. Exiting said classroom and locking the door, I walked through the deserted corridors in order to find the lavatories and then dump the dirty water in it, turning on the tap so that it could go away faster. After all was gone, I stored the cleaning tools back at their place and once I closed and locked that one too, I picked my stuff to take my way to the exit. I guess I can call it a day now, and as expected, all went perfectly normal. Maybe that meeting with Mr. Ikuse was indeed just a hallucination…

"So, did you get the stuff?"

"Right here, man. Guess what, today I got a good shot from president's panties!"

"Huh…?" But in my way to the stairs, I ended up seeing two students talking to each other in the middle of the corridor, too busy with their own 'business' to pay any attention to me. I don't remember them around here, but from here I can see that they are both underclassmen mine. Under closer inspection, I can also see that one of them is carrying a bunch of photos… Of girls' panties.

Oh right, I forgot that Kuoh used to be an all-girls school before changing to co-ed for some reason, and because of that the female population vastly outmatches the male one, and some of those kinds of guys came here just to ' _become the Harem King'_ (according to one of them) or at least find themselves a girlfriend. Me? I picked here because it was closer from home so I wouldn't be wasting money on transportation, and ironically enough I found myself my very own not!girlfriend for that, go figure. Whatever, it's like I'm in for all of that, so maybe ignoring them would be for the best. I was about to take a turn and walk downstairs, but then…

"Wow, is that a flashing one from Akeno?! I want that one!" One of them exclaimed loud out and started to try to reach for it, but the other guy defensively turned around and shielded said photo with his back. "C'mon man, those are so rare! I'll give you anything for one of those!"

Did he say… Anything? Heh, maybe I should start taking pictures of panties too.

What am I saying? The girls would also start hating me for that. Maybe I can something else for a quick cash around here.

"Piss off! This one is mine! It took the best of me to take this photo from Himejima! This is my treasure, and it's not for sale!" The second one scolded back, still shielding said photo away from his 'costumer', who started to get even more aggressive on his advances.

"C'mon! I will seriously pay anything for that! Her succulent thighs combined with her daring panties, not to mention her contrasting skirts the girls wear… That would be enough material for months for me!" The first one commented with eyes filled with lust and drooling mouth, saying things I would rather not hear. Is this what they call a guilty pleasure? This whole ordeal is so obscene and idiotic, yet I can't look away. But the second-handed shame is getting into me. I seriously need to walk away from that. "Look, if you want, I can exchange that one for those I have from Katase!"

"No way! I can give you that I got from the changing room with Shinra, and that's that! No one touches the Akeno one!" And they pulled out more and more photos out of their pockets to start negotiating, and I grow more and more disgusted by the second. How come guys can do that in the middle of the corridor, although a deserted one, while I can't even go to the pachinko parlor to have some cash? Maybe it's the spring of youth card calling, who knows. Better walk away and pretend nothing ever happened, my special way to coup with those situations. "C'mon, get off! I won't give it to you and that's final!"

"Let me at least take a photo of it! Just a little!" And the second one started to really slur on his friend like some kind of goo, while the other was starting to get red with rage. In the end, one tossed his arms over the photo and for a few inches didn't catch it himself. "Let me have a look!"

"I said no!"

 ***PUSH!***

"Ah…!" And then the negotiator got fed up with his friend's clinginess and in one final move, he pushed him away from his back, making the latter fell on his ass on the floor. I thought things would end up in a fight, but after a while, the negotiator instead extended a hand for his fallen friend. "Sorry, man. I got a little carried away. Please me forgive me for that. I still not selling the Akeno's one, though."

"Tch, fine. I guess I would also be like that over a treasure like that." What even is this conversation? I just waited here seeing those two perverts talk about lewd photos of one of my upperclassmen, and now they're mending their friendship just like that. I got fed up with this stuff and then was ready to walk away, just in time to see the second pervert reach for his friend's hand and try to get up. "But you'll have to tell me how you take that photo, because for such a rare th-…!"

* **BAM!***

"…?" But before I could reach the stairs, I heard a lot bam on the floor, and looking back at the perverted duo, I could see that one of them was still on the floor, kneeled on it while looking mildly distressed for his current position, the other more confused than anything else.

"M-My legs… I can't… Feel my legs…!" He said, and by his tone and expression, I could tell that he wasn't lying, making his friend become a bit more exasperated. Maybe I should help them as well. The second pervert reaches his hands for his friend's arm, starting to weep a bit as the other tries to confort him. "D-Dude… I can't… I can't feel my legs! My legs! They aren't moving at all!"

"C-C'mon man, stop with that! You're scaring me!" The second said with a nervous laugh, pushing his friend off the ground in order to help him further to stand up, and from here, I could see he was doing it, eventually being able to touch his feet on the ground. "S-See? No problem! All was just a small…!"

 ***SPLASH!** *

"GYAAAAAAAH…!" And before the other could finish his sentence, the pervert's legs practically fell onto themselves! More than that, his legs just turned into a form of disgusting, bloody jelly that smelled like blood! It's like his entire lower half just liquefied, leaving just a crimson puddle and dirty pants where his legs used to be! Understandably, he freaked out. "M-M-MY LEGS! MY LEEEEEEGS…! DUDE! MY LEGS! THEY'RE GOOOOONE…!"

"I see! I can see that!" The other screamed back, taking a few steps back in order to rationalize what just happened! I am having problem to know what the hell is happening right now, I could only let myself lean on the wall for some sense of reality, as the screams would cease! In the end, the first guy turned around and reached for the stairs, beginning to walk downstairs! "Don't worry! I'll get help! Maybe I can find someone who can fix this!"

"GAAAAAAH! DON'T LEAVE ME!"

"I'll find someone! I promise! Just stay right where you are and…!"

But before he could finish his sentence and take the first step, the first friend's hand slipped off the handrails and he fell right onto the ground. I expected to hear a loud booming sound, but instead, I heard a wet and hilarious *SPLASH* instead, like a water balloon just exploding on the floor. I ran all the way to the start of the stairs, and what I saw was just a lump of flesh all splaltered over the floor, nothing but a boneless sack of skin where a student should be! The classmate next to me screamed from Kingdom Come, while I still have no idea what is going on!

"What the hell… What the hell is going o-…!" I was about to reach for the handrails but then I noticed something: they were all wet and slippery. I recalled my hand yet again and instead just lightly poked them only to confirm that, yes, they were covered in some kind of grease or something! I instead take one step down and looked over the stairs to the floor down… Only to see a real nightmare, a true river of blood and uniforms all splattered over the floor! Lumps of flesh and blood colliding and merging with each other, as uniforms, glasses, underwear and even gadgets were floating around, like some river from hell. "What… What is even happenin-…?"

I tried to step back to the upper floor, but then something fails me. My feet fails on me and instead I slip off the step, instead hitting my derriere on it and feeling all the senses on my legs going awry. What's going on?! I can't move them! I can't move the lower half of my body! Not just that, my for some reason my shoes are coming loose, and when one of them did slipped off, it revealed that my foot is also melting away!

"K-Kh…!" I groaned, seeing the horror of my own flesh and bones melting like a fine ice-cream while my left shoe fell right onto the mess of flesh downstairs that was a classmate of mine not long ago and popped its skin open like a balloon, the stank of blood and bones feeling up my nostrils and making me sick. I'm melting as well! I'm melting! "No…! It can't be! This can't be happening…!"

No, I gotta stay calm, getting desperate only makes you sink further. Only losers get this desperate first! I feel myself going numb from the waist down, but at least my arms are still working! With that in my mind, I try as quickly as I could to climb up the stairs and away from the puddles of mincemeat down below. One step, two steps, until I sat on the main floor, and suddenly, I can feel a bit of an itch from down below. I can… Feel my legs again. They are a bit jelly but I can feel them now! Instead of trying to get up, I crawl myself up another part of the stairs, starting to take steps up after passing another of my classmates who just now turned into a jelly completely. One step, two steps, I can feel my legs completely now, I can move them now. One final step and I could move them now! So then I kick myself up the stairs, and now, putting myself standing up, I kick my legs up the air a few more times. Still a bit itchy, but better than before.

"Even so… What the hell is all of that?" I say to myself, my left barefoot can now feel the cold concrete below while I tap the tip of my right foot to align my remaining shoe into it. Damn it, I try my hardest to polish those shoes, why do they have to step on blood right now. No, no, this isn't the time to think about fashion, there is something going on now, and I have the feeling that the supernatural world has something to do with it. Even so, I wonder why I can now feel my feet, and that after I regained some height. Time to test something. "If I'm correct…"

With that in mind, holding the handrail with a clothed hand by my sleeve and suspending one foot above the step, I took a deep breath to reach my sole to the cold concrete down below. The moment it landed, I felt myself numb, and my losing its weight and coordination. It slipped on its own, leaving behind a trail of flesh. Instinctively, I jumped one step above, and before anything else could happen, I noticed that my foot returned to normal. I kicked it a few times, and it was good as new, even the flesh that was all over the floor has returned to normal…

So that's it, I get it now: if for some reason I get lower than here, my body starts to melt. No, worse than that, I can go up, but not down, otherwise I'll melt away, not even be able to crouch is an option. And if the greasy handrails are any indication, this is not an accident or a freaky phenomenon, it was planned. But… Why? Goosebumps creeps all over my body, and as fast as I could, I jumped all the way to the floor above, not touching anything that would otherwise help me in my ascent, and looked over the floors below on the balcony of this one:

Only to see a gigantic pool of blood and goo, all in crimson, skin tones and black, exalting a nauseating smell of blood and body fluids combined and the sounds of bubbles exploding between them. Some of them have become completely liquid, while others were still trying to walk away and ask for help, all in vain as they eventually would also become lifeless blobs of flesh, screams turning into bubbles as their liquefied skin would melt over their mouths and lungs, leaving nothing but gadgets and uniforms. Oh, My God…

Why didn't anyone tell me that Yuuma Azawa transferred to Kuoh too?!

…

That was a joke. It was just a joke to lighten the tension a bit, please don't judge me, this is the only way I can coup with this crap.

"Well, I'm glad I'm done with my chores today, because I won't be cleaning this mess any longer." I said to no one in particular while doing a blasé pose. This is just my way to coup, I'm actually quite terrified of what is happening just now, but I can't lose my head over this otherwise is game over. Tapping my right foot on the floor, I try to consider the following: What is going on? Why is everyone melting away like that claynimation short? How it knows the target's height on Kuoh and how this can work with or against me? So many questions, so little time, and the adrenaline rush is not helping at all. I gulp down a dry one, the only way I can see here is to go to the rooftop, the highest point in Kuoh, and wait for help. However, something else is also bugging me to no end… My phone. I reach for my phone, and take a closer look at it. Should I give a call? This situation is far beyond my reach, and while thinking about it, I won't be able to formulate straight. I sigh, I can't believe I'm doing this, but this will help me out a little. I clicked on the touchscreen, called for a number and waited for the response. "C'mon… Pick up, this is seriously getting on me…"

 _'…'_

"…"

 _'…'_

"C'mon, c'mon…"

 ***CLICK!***

 _'_ _Hello?'_

"Hey, Yuki. It's me." I said for the voice by the other side of the phone, silently glad that she's, as far as I know, not turned into jelly below. This means Yuki left the building. Even so, this is not reassuring enough. "Say, Yuki, where are you? Are you still at school, or anywhere near Kuoh academy?"

 _'_ _Brrr~, what kind of question is that? Are you spying me from afar like an obsessed stalker, Kokkun? Who'd have thought you had it into you….'_ She says in a tone that mixes both mockery and real concern, and despite my hurt pride, at least she's able to maintain her typical silver tongue over the phone. No matter.

"Just tell me where you are, Yuki. This is… Important." I said in a better and direct tone, and I could hear her sigh under her own breath over the speaker.

 _'_ _Why, I am at my mansion, reading the cooking manga we talked about back in class. I must say, the romance is very poorly conceived despite the build-up since chapter 1.'_ She says. For that I sighed in relief, taking a deep breath and feeling that weight lifting off my shoulders. It's not like I'm concerned over my not!girlfriend, it's just she's one problem less in that mess _. 'But you should've known this by now, since you have been watching me from afar like a perverted stalker that you show yourself to be. Now then, can you say which colour of panties I'm wearing under my nightgown? Guess it right and I'll beat you up, asshole.'_

"N-Nah, that's not the case. I'm just… Glad you're okay." I talk back, leaning myself over the balcony to loosen up a little. I hear an interrogation mark right by the other side, and then a sigh.

 _'_ _Of course I'm okay, Kokkun. Only you are the hapless one without your majestic girlfriend around, you should thank me more for that.'_ She comments with a chirpy tone, and I then started to get fed up with that. She's okay, she's good, everything is therefore fine. No need to talk with her anymore _. 'By the way, Kokkun, I was thinking we could have a date around Hokkaido during Golden week. I heard over there they serve crabs all year.'_

"That's a very specific location for a date. Besides, I don't have money to go to Hokkaido just to eat crab." I answered her, but then she pouts over the speaker in such a way that I can practically draw her face in my mind, making me feel a bit guilty. Okay, fine, maybe a trip to Hokkaido won't be so bad, and I do like crab after all, specially those king-sized ones. I wonder if she's be the one paying, although in this situation right now, eating is becoming more and more alien to me. "Okay fine, if I get out of here alive, let's go to Hokkaido and eat lots of crabs. I'm not paying, though."

 _'_ _Cheapskate, but as expected from a commoner like you. It's almost romantic how even economically we differ so much yet we are in such relationship.'_ She spits back at me, and here I am wondering why she keeps saying that since we're so far away from each other and nobody can presence the fact we're just a fake couple. Maybe she's that paranoid, she did consider me a possible stalker. Not enough time for that, I was about to hang out when she snaps to me _. 'Wait, what do you mean if you get out al-…?'_

And then I hung out in her face and just in case turned off my phone. She's not the type of girl to grow worried about someone like me, and besides I did promise her, and a man who's a man keeps his promises, even without wanting to. Also, it has been a while since I ate crab, the last time was with my mother back in middle school in Osaka, just thinking about makes my mouth water a little. I do like crabs, not only they're a delicious, they're quite inedible(食えない), just like me.

Okay, enough about what to eat, time to get out of here alive and live another normal day. I already shut off my phone, so I can't call Mr. Ikuse to help me here, and I really don't want to, maybe this is one of his plans to destroy my mentality or something. Since he didn't use this ability back home, either he didn't want to rely on it too much, or someone else is pulling the strings on this whole ordeal. An ability that melts whoever lowers themselves for whatever reason, either by falling or stepping down some stairs, and the only way so far to escape this fate is by scaling a few meters up, but I can't even crouch or else I'll lose control over my legs and body. It's a good thing I didn't panic like those two, I guess this is how the other students reacted as well, finding their classmates starting to melt for no reason at all, and walked to their doom trying to get help. That would explain the massive flesh-coloured mess downstairs.

But for now, here I am, islanded on the second floor of Kuoh academy and watching my classmates turn into jell downstairs, with no choice but to stay here until help comes or I find whoever is doing this. Wonder if this is the power of a Sacred Gear? That way, it means someone is controlling all of that, and if I beat him or her up, this will stop… Or things go awry and everyone in the world turns into those. Well, nothing ventured, nothing gained. If I want everything back to normal, either this or melt like those poor bastards downstairs. Time for some exploration…

 ***BZZZZT!***

"…?" I hear a peculiar sound coming from the ceiling, like a mechanical turn, and instinctively turned around to look at it. And there I found a camera, looking directly at me. Wait, what? I do remember that Kuoh has a security system and all, after all the corridors are filled with ranging perverts and bloodlust idiots, but this is the first time I see it moving like that. Maybe it's my imagination? I should just ignore it for now, I have bigger fish to catch. "What is this? Maybe all the blood is rushing over my head or something…"

 ***BZZZZZT!***

"…!" And again that sound! I turned around to look at the camera, and that one single crystal eye is looking back at me! It wasn't even a routine turn to scan the place around, it is staring directly at me! "What the hell…"

I give a few steps left… The camera turns to the left. I give a few steps back to the right… And the camera now turns to the right. Left, right… Left, right… Back, forwards, back, forwards… That thing is following me! This means someone is back in the controller room monitoring everyone melting away! And that someone… has its eyes directly at me! Must be the cause of all of that mess, because everyone should've left the building already. This means whoever is causing all of that must have waited until all the third-years and professors from the upper floors left and then snuck inside the controller room and observe everyone melt away. That would also explain why it is only happening now of all things, and now its targeting me!

Heh, jokes on them, because… I know exactly where they is now! In the controller room in the upper floors next to the teachers' lounge! With that in mind, I tapped my bare foot a few times on the floor and walked towards the next set of stairs leading to the upper floors. I just need to reach for the controller room and find the culprit, and then ask it politely to lift up whatever curse, magic, Sacred Gear stuff it has done… And beat it senseless since he or she just made me smudge my shoes with blood and make me one of my socks. Crap, I can feel the cramps already on the toes of my left foot, walking around barefoot sucks, and I'll make that idiot lick my sole for that to see what's good for it…

In my walk towards the deserted corridors, however, I hear the sound of steps, not just any steps but trippy and slow steps, like someone is leaning on the wall and giving their all to stay up. Even so with such urgency, I couldn't let my guard down, so I picked my jacket and prepare myself to trap and escape from whoever is walking towards me. The cameras are following me still, so it can't be the culprit who's watching me, so maybe a accomplice? Bad guys like that always have an accomplice, especially in those mass-murder plans since they can shift the blame on someone else. Whatever, the steps are coming closer and so am I. I take one step forward to walk into the unknown, ready to flee from whoever I'll be facing, but in the end, the one I saw coming was…

"Ah, vice-president." Yes, the Vice-president of the student council of Kuoh academy, Tsubaki Shinra, with her always stern bespectacled heterochromatic eyes, black long hair and pale skin, leaning on a wall and letting out a hurtful cough. She's not only coughing, she's also sweating like crazy.

"K-Kurokam-…!" But before she could finish her sentence, she let out a final cough and let herself go from the wall, about to hit the floor! I knew exactly what would happen if she goes any lower, so I caught her in my arms and lifted her up on the wall so she wouldn't fall again. However, it was no use, she was already unconscious for whatever reason. Crap, I'll have to carry her away or else she'll melt as well. And so instead I used my jacket to wrap her around me and her body supporting itself on my shoulder. Good thing Yuki is already home, or else she'd murder both us like that.

"Ah, this is no time to think about that, I need to go to the controller r-…!" And I caught myself in coughing out of the sudden after something starts to irritate my throat. Ugh, what even is that? Not just my throat, but my eyes are starting to sting too and my nose is starting to run. I cough more and more but the itch just don't go away. What is happening now? It looks like something is burning in here. Even so, I still need to reach for the stairs. "No time for that either. I must find the culprit and then see what the hell is going on. I need to remove this curse and then…!"

And then I turned the corner of the corridor, only to see more and more puddles of flesh and blood all over the place, but not just that, but also puddles of some liquid that was expelling some nasty gas around. It smells so bad, I feel like throwing up, not the irritation just doesn't stop, and my eyes are already going all blurry. Despite such, I could see from afar a few bottles all dropped on the floor, dripping from within their hollow insides those same fluids from before. Wait a minute… This smell… This feeling… And the people melted just here and Vice-president's state…

Don't tell me… They mixed Bleach and ammonia to create chloramine gas!

I instinctively closed my mouth and nose with a hand to avoid inhaling even more of that toxic stuff. What the hell, so not leading people to their melting fate was enough, they want to knock people unconscious with that cursed mixture to fall into their trap too? That's too low even for me. What now? I can't leave vice-president here or else she'll melt, but if I don't something I'll also be knocked out silly by the gas and join the jelly orgy. Getting downstairs to get help is also out of question, and the windows are locked by this hour and their glasses are too thick to break. Then I remember one thing: for all the problems, chloramine gas is still denser than air, so if I could find the stairs and go upstairs, maybe I can escape this deadly mist and find the culprit before I pass out. Not to mention just a few floors up is also the controller room, where it supposedly is...

I coughed a bit again, and this time I can't even breathe right. Damn it, I can't keep brainstorming that much or else I'll just lose more and more precious moments to think. I need to go and find my way upstairs, find my way to escape this nightmare. Adjusting vice-president tighter around me and making sure she won't fall, I dashed through the corridors, passing all the molds of flesh, empty bottles of bleach and ammonia, looking for that cursed stairs while having a time to cope a feel with vice-president. If I die today, at least I could say I groped some boobies…

What am I saying? No, I will survive this crisis, and show that Mr. Ikuse that I can do it without him. I bet he's waiting there for me to call just to play the savior and make me think he's my only hope in this madness of a new world. Well, guess again Mr. Ikuse, because, no matter what…

Luck always sides with Kokuto Kurokami!


	4. Hanged Deadman, part 2

**Hi! I hope you're all enjoying this fic and the following chapters! Also, unlike the other chapters, this will have a few notes by the end of the chapter below! So stay tuned, have a good read and don't forget to R &R.**

 **DxD belongs to Ishibumi and it's respective magazines.**

 **This chapter, now it's all action-packed, my first time trying one of those, so i hope i did a Good job!**

* * *

"Huff... Huff... Huff... Cough! Cough! Cough!"

And I talked all that big game, but in the end after that sprint over the corridor, I couldn't help but to start losing fuel in the middle of the way, not to mention that carrying vice-president here is seriously weighting on me, and trying to keep her high on the floor makes this even harder, not to mention that running around with just one shoed foot is making me lose balance. How was that again? Inhaling chloramine gas reacts with the water on my respiratory tracts and release ammonia, hydrochloric acid and oxygen free radicals that can corrode my insides like water on toilet paper, in the worst case all my airways will be corroded and finally I will collapse and either turn into jelly or continue to inhale the gas until I die. However, chroramine gas is also denser than regular air, so if I go upstairs enough I might be able to escape from it and take vice-president to a safer place. I cough yet again and my eyes are starting to tingle. My skin is also getting colder and colder, and a sensation of lightness is getting to my head. I punched myself on the face to maintain myself awake and cause a nosebleed to close my nostrils for good. I have keep on or else.

"C'mon Kokuto, you got this. Cough! Cough! Just imagine that upstairs is a casino filled with cute bunny girls and coins for you to spend your entire evening on. Cough! Cough! Ugh…" I gulped down the feeling vomit coming, but after inhaling the air one more time, my throat burns completely, making me gasp. This is the worst! I feel like I'm in a sauna in Heinola only less 110°C and more 2NH³+Cl²=2NH²Cl, and if I don't do something this will be 2010 all over again. I blow off the blood from my nose and continue to walk covering my mouth with my bloodied mouth to withstand the toxic gas. "Vice-president. Vice-president, are you okay? Say something. If you're dead at least tell me so I can leave you behind because saving you is really tiring…"

She said nothing, but her answer was a light wheezing coming directly from her lungs. She's still alive, and despite all of that, I'm glad she's okay. How long has been here? However made this trap knows about the entire layout of Kuoh because the closer I get from the stairs the more and more puddles of pure chloramine I find, expelling more and more poison. If I don't do something, I'll be next. Ah, what the hell! I take a deep breath and coughing that acid air one more time, I sprinted again to the corridors, stepping on puddles of chloramine and my own classmates and clothes all over the floor, until I could see it! The stairs! Holding tight to vice-president, I ran even faster just by seeing that place, and even hearing the buzzing from the cameras around me, hope fills me and compels me to continue! Don't worry, vice-president, just a little more and we can escape from this floor! If I just reach the stairs I can make her sit on the steps and rest away from the gas. C'mon, just a little more. I finally reach for the stairs, and take the first step up to the third f-…!

 ***SLIP!***

"…!" However, the moment I stepped on the first elevation, I felt myself losing contact to the sole of it. My bare left foot instead feels something cold and slippery, and as such, in just one second, I flip on the air, and feel my whole body falling on the stairs. Before I knew it, I hit my jaw on one step while my whole weight push me against the elevated floor, making me wheeze in pain, as my stepping foot almost bend itself away. I fell on top of the stairs, but before I could slid off from it, I used my sore arms to lift myself off to the upper steps. One jump over a few steps, I noticed something about the surface of these stairs: they were completely waxed, the slimy and cold substance getting all over my clothes and hands. Crap, whoever is doing this knows how to leave intruders away. Moreover, this explains all those puddles on the start of the stairs, I'm not the only one who tried to escape the gas. Bastard. At least I did it. "V-Vice president, I'm sorry for that… But at least we… Vice-president?"

My whole body became colder when I noticed something: the moment I slipped off the steps, my body became lighter and faster. I wanted to believe that it was just the pain numbing my senses, but no, the moment I turned around, vice-president was no longer with me. Out of the sudden I turned my head to the floor below, and my worst fear for now was materializing right in front of me: Vice-president Shinra escaped my grasp and was now melting on the floor! No, it was worse than that, her how body splashed all over the floor like a ball of rotten paint and mixing with the other students and the chloramine solution, leaving only her clothes behind!

"Vice-president Shinr-…!" I extended her hand for the woman that was no more, only to push myself away from harm the moment I notice how stupid and careless that move was. No, I must not give in to surprise or despair. I'm completely bare-feet on a waxed staircase, and a single slip off from here will make me melt like honey. Stay calm, Kokuto, just go slow and stedily, otherwise is game over. You had luck on your side this time, which means that your chances of getting out of here alive have lowered. Stay calm and focus, everything has a solution regardless of the problem. With that in mind, I take a deep breath again and started to drag myself up the stairs. To make me pass through so much humiliation, I'll get whoever is behind all of that and beat it up completely and then steal some cash for all my bleached uniform and shoes.

Also, a bit for what he did to my classmates and vice-president I guess.

Finally, I reached for the midway through the stairways, a little intersection between one stair and another for the third floor, where I found enough room to stand up and lean on a wall without the threat of an accident. Still, every step is dangerous, so just in case I leaned myself on the wall. Just a few turns and I'll be right on the third floor and to the controller room. The cameras are still following me, so that means that the culprit is still there. Great, just a few steps and then it'll be showtime… Only that, the moment I was about to turn around, I looked up and gasped in surprise, something that only made cough even more: the floor above, the third floor, was barricaded with tables, chairs and lockers all over the entrance.

…

 _ARE YOU KIDDING ME_?!

"No! This can't be! This can't b-…!" Whoa! Calm down there, Kokuto! There are no windows to the way leading to the third floor, so if I go upstairs and there is no way to pass through it, I'll be completely islanded on that place and soon or later I would suffocate with the gas. Instead, stay calm and analyze it. Analyze it clear and hard from here, without letting yourself slip or take a single step up.

Taking a look from here, I can see that that entire improvised barricade was not any simple barricade: that is a complete construct hell. Once it's done, it cannot be undone, an escapeless maze, an impossible puzzle, to try to push, pull or even solve that will cause that entire mess of chairs, lockers and tables to get tighter and tighter, only making it worse from there. Another thing to notice there: even if I try to push it away, the legs of the tables and chairs are stuck on the floor, not in a violent way, but more like they just sank there like sand, but how? The culprit could not just carve holes there and prepare that entire mess of a maze without being noticed hours ago. This can be only another ability of it, so it cannot just melt people, but objects too? This is getting too complicated, and I'm honestly just islanded here since I can't go downstairs without becoming jelly and join the melting club.

My only way out is… Through the window, those thick, reinforced, tiny windows with wooden grills and iron locks. This is going to be painful, but I have no choice, better a busted shoulder than no shoulder at all. I have to do it, or else everything is lost, and it'll be game over. Okay, Kokuto, lock your breath and then jump! Burst your way to the outside world away from the mist of death!

"Hey, Kurokami!"

"Hah…?" I turned around when I heard someone calling my name, and to my surprise, there was a professor still here, professor Yamada. The middle-aged man with thich glasses, square face and grizzly combed hair frowned his entire face to me and made a face while straightening his tie and adjusting his glasses on his nose. "Ah! Professor Yamada!"

"What are you doing here, at this hour? I hope nothing illegal! I already have to deal with those other troublemakers from the perverted trio. My patience is running thin! If I find that someone like you is causing even more problems around Kuoh, I refuse to deal with any more idiots like you! Expulsion it is!" He says in my way in a strict and demeaning tone, and honestly I'm surprise that I now wish that someone has become jelly by now. He was about to call me out one more time, but he then stepped right on top of the uniforms on the floor and in another puddle of students, and turned his eyes there, only to frown in disgust onto the floor. However, something happened that made him brighten his eyes in surprise and a little bit of… Joy? I was not sure what it was, but then I noticed that along with Vice-president's uniform, came sliding away something from it, and from here, I noticed what it was: "This is… Shinra-chan's… P-P-P-Panties."

"Uuuh~… Professor Yamada?" I tried to call for him, but then he didn't even listen to me, he bent over straight over the lacy panties on the floor and caught them with his hands among the puddle of students! Such sudden movements, I gasped in shock! He's going to melt like this! "Ah! Professor Yamada!"

"Shinra-chan's panties! I can't believe it! I finally have it in my hands! Shinra-chan's panties, Shinra-chan's panties, Shinra-chan's panties, Shinra-chan's panties, Shinra-chan's panties, Shinra-chan's panties!" He didn't even hear me, he's just so excited to have in his possession Vice-president's underwear that he's playing with it while kneeled on the floor like an euphoric child, not even noticing his whole body melting! However, before anything else, professor Yamada then took the panties in his possession and put it in his face, taking a deep, sonorous and violent sniff from it, and letting out an almost orgasmic moan. *SNIIIIIIFFFF~!* "OOOOOOOOOOHHH~…! So good! SOOOO~ GOOOOD~! I'm in heaven! _I'M IN HEAVEN~! OH… OH… OHHHHHH~…! EXCEEEEEEEEELSIOOOOOOOOOR~…!"_

 ***SPLASH!***

"…"

Professor Yamada… Now just exploded in Jelly.

…

…

What was the point of that scene, anyway?

 ***CRASH!***

And with the help of the slippery floor and my own numbness caused by the gas, I smashed my shoulder against the wooden supports of the window, coming down completely shattering that fancy piece of glass. Fresh air! Finally caught in the good side of the atmosphere, I carefully supported myself on the small counter of the window in order to catch my breath and take a deep, clean breath while the gas behind me loses scent for the moment. I cough, I spit, but in the end I was all good to continue with the plan. Now I stand tall on the balcony, my bare left foot reacting to the rough and cold floor from concrete while I rub the sole of my shoed right one to get rid of the waxing on it. Sturdy balance, clear head, and breathing normally. This are coming up Kokuto, at least this time, but this is only the first half of the battle, now I have to climb up and go to the third floor, but the window leading up there is too far away, and who knows what will happen if I try to bend over to jump. Sigh, if I only I had wings so I could fly from here up there…

…

Nah, I've never fly before, if I so happen to magically grow wings now, I would possibly mess up and freefall from here, and if the impact doesn't kill me turning into jelly surely would. I need to think of new alternatives instead of wishful thinking that would probably kill me because I didn't foresee enough.

Then I remembered, Kuoh has the old-styled brick walls and supporting pillars that stick out to outside. It's aesthetically pleasing and such, but also means I can climb up from there and reach for the up floor without much trouble. I do have firm fingers and even with a bare foot I can support my own weight on the bricks, no problem. I just need to concentrate and be sure that I won't slip. With that in mind, I spit on both my hands and start to grasp the bricked wall while I supported myself on them as well, I just need to be careful and precise or else I'll slip off and if the height doesn't kill me, turning into jelly surely will. C'mon Kokuto, don't be thinking the worse now, you gotta brighten up or else everything is lost. Fortunately, my climb up the wall wasn't that much of a mess. My naked hands were being scrapped by the rough walls little by little, but I continued to go on and on, until I finally reached the counter of the window of the third floor. Yes! I reached the third floor! I reached for the controller room! I just need to go there, break the window again and go inside, carefully so I won't lower myself, so I can't stand up on the counter, I need to roll inside and then stand up before I lose control of my body. Almost there, almost there!

 ***STAB! STAB! STAB!***

"…!" And then I reached for the counter-window of the third floor, but then when I thought I would touch the cold and smooth concrete, I was greeted instead by an irregular, sharp and hot surface, which completely stabbed and scratched my hand! I let out a quiet wail of pain, but refused to give in. Instead I dragged my harmed hand away from that surface and instead brought up my forearm by the edge of the counter so I could pull myself up from there.

Once I could finally reach there, I saw what was happening there: the culprit behind all of that didn't leave any breaches for his escape, the counter was filled with pins, tacks, glass and finally a whole role of barbed wire spread all over it. They were also sunk into the concrete surface just like the chairs from the second floor, leaving a spiky floor waiting for any poor bastard who'd think just like me. What is this?! It looks like whatever I find an escape is just another dead end! Whatever, I'm almost there, I just need to open the damn window and go inside and beat the culprit senseless! I took a deep breath, gritted my teeth and climbed myself over the trap counter, which cut my arms, forearms, pants and body and leaving my uniform utterly tattered, but no matter, I just need to kick the window open! Supporting my own upper body on my hands while supporting those with my fingers over the spike, I aimed my legs against the window and then give it a kick! It wasn't enough, but the glass trembled a little. I kicked it again and again, and then the glass broke while the wooden support started to give in! C'mon, one more time! I kicked the window yet again, and then, bursting that wood in my way, the portal leaving to the third floor finally opened! Things are finally coming my way!

Or at least is what I thought: The moment the window forcefully opened, a small plastic ball hidden between the handlers on it exploded open, releasing something within it! The moment that happened, my eyes started to tear up, my nose started to run and a sensation of level-headness started to spread over my brain, so much that I lost my balance and fell from the counter! This smell… This sensation… Liquid chlorine?! This bait and switch is really getting on my nerves!

I slipped off the counter and up to the edge from it, but before I could finally fall to my death, I blinked once and, in a moment of lucidity, I grabbed the barbed wire as hard as I as could and then proceeded to be suspended by it, like drying clothes. Blood runs through my hands for grasping the wire, but if I don't go up, then that's it! No good, I can feel it again, my feet are starting to get numb and suddenly my arms feel like they're lifting a ton! The melting effect is working even outside of Kuoh, not to mention that the third floor was also filled with traps since chloramine gas is also oozing from the window up to my face. Crap, if I don't do something… C'mon, Kokuto, think, what would Harrison Ford do in this situation? Probably die stabbed by his own son while trying to have a moment… No, wrong movie. Perhaps…

Ah, I feel like fainting. Screw logic and chances! It's now or never gambit! So as fast as I could, I punched one of the shards of glass stuck on the counter to get myself a smaller shard, and once I have it, I picked it with one hand while the other started to roll wire all around it. It's bleeding a lot, but the gas in making even the pain numb. Once I got enough from the wire, I started to cut it with the piece of shard, sawing it like the rougher side and hoping for the best! The pain is coming back and the small shard is also cutting my other hand, but I need to concentrate! I need to survive! Suddenly, the wire snaps in two parts, so I abandon the one half and turned my attention to the other one. The wire is stuck on the concrete, but shallowly, a single push is enough to snap it away from the sunken trap, so I do just that. One by one, the wire comes free from the concrete prison and I get a lengthier metal cord, until I finally reach for a good distance between me and the farthest part of the wire that is still stuck on the concrete. Well, it's now or never, I always liked Johnny Weissmuller anyway, but to think I'd come to do this… The gas is getting to my head, better do it at once.

And so… I let myself fall from the counter. Just by freefalling like this I can already feel my whole body losing consistency, the numbing feeling going through out my body like I'm falling asleep instead. For moment, I thought it was all over. It was a nice ride, but for a small second, I felt like I was going to die even before hitting the floor. And I was okay with this. I tried my best, and this is what matters… This is what matters, to be a good sport.

 ***SNAP!***

… As if! Kokuto Kurokami never loses at anything! I was right! This is the perfect length for the cord! And as such, the moment the last meter of wire fell with me, the part which was still stuck on the concrete halted my descent, and like a pendulum I swung back upwards! My feet for inches didn't touch the floor, and so I complete the circumference and launched myself to the skies! To where, you ask? To the rooftop, of course! The moment I reached the highest I could, I let go of the wire and aimlessly flew all over Kuoh, but still in midair, I turned myself to the direction of the rooftop, where I could see a figure standing there, in too much awe of my figure to do anything! Big mistake, I turned my feet to his direction and then I started to freefall, I started to descent for a great landing! The figure, a little man wearing prison clothes and using a strange device, gasped in surprise as he tried to run away, but it was too late! I landed my shoed right foot on his little body and smashed him completely against the concrete rooftop. The force was too much even for me, so I fell as well and rolled away from him until I reached the grilled ends of the rooftop, hurt, bleeding and a bit lightheaded, but alive. But alive.

I just swung myself over adversity using a spiky wire and tricks. And you thought only Joseph Joestar would be able to do that!

"You… You little shit…" But no time to celebrate yet! As fast as I could, I stood up on my feet and turned to the direction where I landed, where I saw a small bald man holding his bleeding nose and turning his black twisted eyes on me. He was wearing a bloodied orange prison uniform and his entire face was covered in scars and burns, not to mention the crushed nose. His posture was also peculiar: his whole body was disproportional, and I'm not just talking about the fact that he's at least a whole half meter shorter than me, like his whole chest skeleton has been rearranged or something. Prison uniform, small stature, blood all over him, it doesn't need a genius to join the dots.

"So… You must be…" I turned to him and asked, but he suddenly shouted at me and spat blood coming from his nose by doing so.

"YES! I am _Tyrion 'Genocider' Lannister_ , the man who killed over 200,000 people over his single year of crime and escaped prison by killing every inmate, animal and officer there and rowing all my way to Japan using a boat made out from their corpses!" He presented himself as, summoning from his hands a mace with a silver skull-shaped head, which them he supported on his tiny hands. "Now, who the hell are you?! How did you escape my [ _HANGED DEADMAN_ ]'s ability, the power to liquefy everything that is right below me as long as I know which part of it I want to melt and is touching the place as a whole?! I ensured that every single escape corner would be closed or filled with a trap, that's how I killed so many people while on top of the Burj Khalifa, the Empire State Building and the Tower of Pisa! So how?! HOW!"

"That's easy to answer." I said, opening a smile and pointing at myself with a thumb, only to put salt in the wound that I figure it out how it works. "Because I'm Kokuto Kurokami, the one who always has luck by his side! I guess you can call me the man who Lady Luck smiles upon when under pressure!"

"Kh…!" And his only reaction from my presentation was gritted teeth behind his bloody lips and face, taking quick and discomposed breaths as more and more blood would come out of his nose. I looked back at feet and I could see a small remote control and a camera with a wire coming all the way to the door leading to the stairs. I see, so he's not really on the controller room, but has some kind of machine doing his job while he stays at a safe distance. Makes sense, considering that the third floor is also filled with chloramine gas and traps. I let out a small smug sigh, looking at him from up to my nose.

"So, you're the one causing that entire ruckus. I must say, I was surprised by the fact you put so much effort in trying to bind anyone to liquefy by planting traps and dead ends everywhere, but it all ends here." I said, lifting a hand and pointing at him, a he could only groan, trying to step towards me but failing to hold his broken nose. "Undo all the damage you've done to my school and classmates, and I'll let you walk away with that, but not before you pay for making me lose my shoes and tatter all of my clothes! Those things are expensive, y'know!"

"Think you're so hot, don't you kid?! I killed thousands of people twice my size and who has lived twice as much and thrice as harder than a spoiled brat like you would ever understand! I killed war veterans, trained assassins and five-star marines with muscles bigger than your entire dorso; I've mutilated countless guard dogs as feral and strong as mountain lions; I trampled over supernatural creatures and minor Gods that could destroy this tiny nation various times over and I myself lived through so much I could consider hellfire itself a safe haven for the most of my life! What you, a scrawny, pathetic, spoiled high-school loser can do to me I haven't suffered ten times, no, a million times worse before?! How could someone as stupid and pampered as you could think of worst punishment that someone like me, who has been living in the shitters of the worst parts, have never suffer before?! Can you think of something, huh?! _CAN YOU_?!"

"…"

"…"

"Fillius Flitwick."

"Hah…?"

"You said that you're known as ' _Tyrion Lannister'_ because you're a dwarf just like that character from those books, right? The actor who plays him in the Tv Series, Peter Dinklage, suffers from _Achondroplasia_ , which means that his torso is normal sized while his legs and arms are short." I wondered to myself against his face of sudden surprise then I turn back at him pointing a finger. "While you seem to suffer from _Spondyloepiphyseal dysplasia congenital_ which means that you have a bone growth disorder all over, which puts you instead in the same type as Warwick Davis, who played Professor Flitwick in the Harry Potter film franchise. Therefore, you should instead be called Flitwick."

"…"

"…"

…

"Heheh… Heheheheheh… _HEHEHEHEHEH… HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH…! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH! HAAAAAAAH… HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH… AAAAAAHAHAAAAAAAAHAAAAAHAHAAAAAAHAAAAH…!"_ And after that little moment of laughing, Tyrion pulled from his clothes a silver switchblade and turned to me, eyes filled with bloodlust and ready to unleash the power of his Sacred Gear, which started to glow a powerful silver shine! " _I'M GONNA CASTRATE YOU, YOU PIECE OF SHIT_!"

" _JUST TRY IT, ASSHOLE! THE ONLY THING YOU'LL GET FROM ME IS MY SIZE TEN UP YOUR FACE_!"

"[ **HANGED DEADMAN** ]! _DESTROY THOSE WHO LOOK DOWN ON ME! LIQUEFY THEM SO THEY FEEL WHAT SOMEONE LIKE ME FEELS ALL THE TIMES: THE STARES OF SPITE AND PITY FROM ABOVE_!" And he smashed the head of his sacred gear club against the floor sending a silver shockwave all the place. I dashed in his direction and tried to finish this as soon as possible, but before I knew it my feet sank into the floor, like I just stepped on a sand trap! I sank and sank until I was knee-deep on the concrete, so much I could feel my feet suspended on the ceiling of the third floor. Mr. Tyrion could only groan by seeing me like this. " _FOOL! [ **HANGED DEADMAN** ] CAN DO MUCH MORE THAN JUST MELT PEOPLE, IT CAN ALSO LIQUEFY EVERYTHING THAT IT TOUCHES, INCLUDING CONCRETE, AS LONG AS I AM ABOVE IT AND KNOW EXACTLY WHERE I WANT THAT TO HAPPEN! ENJOY YOUR RIDE ON THIS URBAN QUICKSAND UNTIL YOU MELT AWAY IN THE HELL OF CHLORINE!"_

"Damn it… Damn it…!" I cursed under my breath as I tried yet failed to see myself free from that concrete trap! It's not just where I am, the whole floor from my side is melting as well and thr depression I'm in sank so much it formed a whole behind me! And it's growing so much I'm being dragged into it! Crap, I don't have anything to hang on to! If I fall, only pain and despair awaits me!

"You staid there and laughed, the whole world staid there and laughed, but in the end, it is I who shall have the last laugh when I look upon you all from your ridiculous, melted selves!" He cursed at me with his eyes spitting hatred and sadness, tears and boogers mixing with the blood of his forehead and nose. " _FALL AND DIE, KOKUTO KUROKAMI! FALL KNOWING THAT YOUR ARROGANCE AND CONFIDENCE LED YOU NOWHERE BUT A SHALLOW GRAVE! PERISH AND GO TO HELL WHERE I STAY HERE AND CURSE THIS ROTTEN W-…!"_

 ***SNAP!***

"Ugwaaah…!" And then I interrupted his own villainous monologue by locking his jaw. How, you ask? "The… The _WIRE_ …!"

"If I'm going down, Mr. Tyrion, then you're going with me!" I said, hands firmly grasping the wire that had stuck on my arm which I lassoed around his face and tighten it around his jaw area, right onto his cheeks and mouth, as I pulled him closer and closer to me and therefore to the whole that is starting to drag me into itself! Eat your heart out now, Joseph Joestar! If I can drag him with me and make him fall into the hole, then his sacred gear won't affect me and I can counter attack before the gases and traps incapacitate me, and since he's smaller and lighter than me, that will be a piece of cake! However, when I turned back to him, I saw that he's started to saw his way to freedom with the switchblade on his hand! Damn it, another dead end!

"am I? AM I?! THINK AGAIN, KUROKAMI!" He shouts between his wired teeth and bleeding cheeks. " _YOU DON'T STAY A CHANCE AGAINST THE MAN WHO KILLED OVER 200,000 PEOPLE! VICTORY SHALL BE MIN-…!"_

 ***FLICK!***

" _GAAAAAAW_ …!"

"Bullseye!" I declared seeing his bleeding eye with a massive tack I picked from the counter craved on it! I trained my fingers to flip off coins in the side I wanted, so flipping these tacks I picked up from earlier onto his eyes and weaken him while also blinding him is a piece of cake! Still, he's still trying to cut the wire down with his switchblade! I pick more and more tacks, nails and shades of glass from my pockets and flipped them in high speed against him, all hitting on the rights spots of his legs, arms, chest and crouch while his stance would become fragile and his balance would fault more and more! "Fall, just fall!"

"You… _YOU LITTLE_ …!" He says, but it was too late! The hole behind me dragged me with it and before he could cut the wire completely I fell onto the fissure, pulling him along with me with one last strong pull which practically shot him towards me! Once we both fell onto the floor, the ground above became solid again and so rubbles of concrete started to fall with us as well! In the end, everything came down crashing on the third floor, such as me, Mr. Tyrion, fragments of the now ceiling and everything on it, lifting a curtain of mist.

No sound, no words, my body was too weak to do anything else, but I tried my best to stand up, and so I did with some extra effort. By the looks and by the fact I can feel my feet again it looks like I was successful in dragging Mr. Tyrion with me, and look, I still have my pants and right shoe despite almost melting from the knees down. I looked right onto the curtain of mist, and from beyond the sandy background, I saw a figure also standing tall… Standing strong right in front of me, but then it faultered and kneeled on the floor. The dust cleaned, and now I see myself just a few meters away from Mr. Tyrion, who was using his sacred gear as a crutch to support himself, still with his switchblade at hands. He was so breathless and tired, trying his best to recompose himself, he didn't even notice me at the moment, but when he did, he frowned yet again, eyes bleeding horror and grief.

"You… You…!" He says trying to walk toward me, but his legs fail him again and so he supports himself on the mace again. Suddenly, he starts to cough violently, as his nose starts to run and his eyes to tear up. The moment he noticed what was happening was the moment his whole face went blank with horror.

"Like I said: Chloramine gas is way denser than regular air, the floor is where it goes once all the fumes are expelled, and those closer to it are the ones who are caught first. There is a theory¹ that the last Plague of Egypt, the death of the firstborns, may not have occurred because of divine intervension, but because of the eruption of a Volcano somewhere in Santorini which leaked carbon dioxide through the sole, killing the firstborns which were the ones who slept closer to the ground." I declared thinking about that documentary my mom forced me to watch once since she said it was 'super interesting'. I didn't it like at all, but it does paint our situation a bit better. "The same is happening here: Your height is making you come closer to the gas and is affecting you more. I say, in a few minutes, it'll knock you out."

"…" He says nothing, only wheezes to keep up his own breath but fails as he coughs yet again. I sharpen my eyes for him as well as I can see still some sense of struggle coming from him. He is persistent, I'll give him that, but it all ends here, and whichever way it goes, I win, no doubt.

"I could just leave you here and let you succumb to the gas. I noticed that the effects of a Sacred Gear, at least yours, are linked to the user's desires and capabilities, which means once the chloramine kicks in and you faint, everything's gonna go back to normal. I assume you barricaded the ways leading to the rooftop as well, so even if I somehow lose, you will fall for it anyway. It's over for you, Mr. Tyrion." I declare, and he grit his teeth yet again, holding his mace tighter and tighter while his nose wouldn't stop running. "However, winning this way is way too shallow and pathetic for me. Hell, I won't consider this a victory if just a technicality is what allowed me to win. It'll leave a bad taste in my mouth for months. Therefore, this shall be our last stand, Mr. Tyrion."

"…" He grunts and looks at me with utter hatred and disdain. Yeah, no, I rather not win this way. A technicality, making me the victor? What kind of cheap conquest that would be? I am Kokuto Kurokami, the one who Lady Luck assists under pressure. Even on a pinch, I shall stand tall, therefore, this is the least I can do. He's still armed with his Sacred Gear and switchblade, and the distance between us leaves no room for slow thinking, this is the perfect standoff between us, this is a fair game for both of us.

"Now, draw your Switchblade and [ **HANGED DEADMAN** ], Tyrion Lannister. I shall beat you regardless of traps, gadgets, magical powers, tactics, intervention or even miracles you still might have. The moment you decided to oppose me and my normal, quiet life is the moment you lost, and I shall prove you right here, right now." I said lifting a hand against him, coughing a little since the gas is getting on me as well. No weapons or Sacred Gears on my end, just my own luck and efforts against everything he has. His Sacred Gear, his switchblade and whichever tactics he has, I already beat him. "Now, into the Unknown, you. Charge and meet your fate that stands right in front of you. No matter, would it be a straight **road** (道), or a shot of **luck** (運); your **fate** (道/運+命) shall be only one!"

And then… Silence

."…"

"…"

…

…

 ***LEAP!***

 **"[HANGED DEADMAN]!"**

"ORAAAAAH…!" And then he activated his Sacred Gear, smashing the silver skull head on the floor! Before it could affect me, I leaped on the air and tried to smash his face onto the floor, but he was faster than I could imagine and so he jumped away from me, and instead my left foot sank into the floor like in quick sand, leaving me craved on the floor as he picked his switchblade and aimed directly at me!

" _DO NOT UNDERESTIMATE ME, KUROKAMI! NOW, DIEEEEEE_ …!" He shouts at me, ready to crave that switchblade onto my throat! Damn it, no matter, I'm still on the game! Without even thinking twice, I used my remaining forces to pull my right leg and then get ready to kick his face up! He noticed my next move, and so, when I was about to kick him, he landed on the floor and jumped back, escaping the reach of my entire leg! " _QUIT STRUGGLING AND DIE! THE WINNER IS I, TYRION 'GENOCYDER' LANNISTER, YOU PIECE OF SH-…!"_

 ***SLIP!***

 ***POW!***

 _"BUGWAAAAAAAAH_ …!" And it just happened just as planned: The kick was only a distraction, and the moment I moved against him, for a moment the shoe on my right foot gave up and loosen up, the momentum and velocity being enough for it to practically fly off my foot and land straight on him, sinking it even more on his ugly face! The force it in was also too much, as he practically jetted away from me and hit the windows!

"I did tell you, the only thing you'll get from me… _IS MY SIZE TEN UP YOUR FACE_!" I said our loud as he clashed on the windows. The power on it was too much as even someone of size was enough to make the whole place tremble, and then, *tick, tick!*, little by little the glass behind me began to shatter away and the wooden support to give in. In the end, no matter what, victory was mine, and for that, I only got one thing to say: "Game over."

And the window gave in, letting the poor small bastard fall on his back towards the ground as he would also fall first on the counter and lay on his own trap of glass, tacks, nails and barbed wire, only to struggle and finally fall to the grounds below, his wails of despair and pain getting further and further until they ceased completely. Just as before, the moment he fell, the moldy floor below me became solid again, so I could pop my left foot from it without any problems, finally standing up victorious from this improvised battle ground. This is it, this is my day finally. As always, victory is mine. As always, luck has sided with **Kokuto Kurokami**!

" **LUCKY~** **⋆!"**

* * *

"Ughh… Ughh…"

"Well, well, you're still alive. Surely killing you would be too much to ask, but I'm no murderer at all. Again, even without me knowing, luck is by my side."

And everything was over. The school has returned to normal, and all the students here came back from their jelly orgies and regained their human form. It took a while for me, but I managed to open all the windows and let the toxic gas escape while kicking down all the barricaded pathways with the help of some brute force. Now, everyone is safe, if not completely naked after their clothes have been literally slid away from them and I just called for the police and emergency to come, so they'll be here at any minute. Now, I face with the mastermind behind all of that, the little man hanging above the floor from a single barbed wire around his little ankle, much more like a true hanged man. I cup him by the top of his upside-down head and make him turn to me.

"Now then, if you don't mind me asking, Mr. Tyrion, who sent you?" I asked him while he was still conscious. He let out a confused hum, and a shook him from the suspended wire a few times. "Don't play dumb with me. Who sent you? Was it Mr. Ikuse or an affiliated with him? I bet he's just right around the corner waiting for me to call him and he save me from this wholr ordeal, little knowing I figure how to get out by myself."

"S-Screw you, Kurokami… I've never met someone who goes by that name…" He coughed a little and spat on the floor, only making my patience run thinner. Out of the sudden, I smashed his face on the wall and turned him to me yet again. Don't worry, in this position and with all the blood running to his head, I doubt he'll faint now. "I-I swear… I've never met someone named Ikuse…"

"So why did you target Kuoh? Wasn't because of me?" I asked him again, more and more doubts filling up my mind since he looks sincere on his statement, so it means something else is up around.

"Oh screw you, you egocentric hypocritical good-for-nothing, the world doesn't turn around you, asshole." He spits, and I don't smash him again against the wall because he continued to talk. "I'm here because while I was running from the police, this… Malignant, evil man came to me and threatened me to kill the little sisters of the Maoh who study in this school. He explained to me that he is a fallen angel and I have a Sacred Gear and all the stuff about heavens, angels and devils, and that he wanted to start a war or something by getting the sisters of the Maoh killed."

"Fallen angel…" I echoed what he just said. Wait, so it was a fallen angel who found this madman and asked him to kill… The sisters of the Maoh on this school. Not only that gives me a lot of insight, but also means that devils, angels and fallen angels do have a lot of time on their schedule to mess with a school as boring and uneventful as Kuoh, the school which I frequent. Just my luck. I turn back to him. "Do you have the names of your targets or something?"

"Nah, he just said that with my Sacred Gear, killing them wouldn't be a problem since its range and abilities are quiet deadly, and the more I kill here the better to piss of their families, so he didn't give me any names." Again, just my luck, my only way to find out who's a supernatural being in this school is a tykebomb guy who doesn't discriminate, and we all know how great that one turned out. "But he did give me his name, that egocentric bastard as only his."

"Really?" I asked. "So, what's his name?"

" _Kokabiel_ …"

Kokabiel, another fallen angel…

…

…

"What a name. Why do all fallen angels I've heard from so far have names that sounds like carbonated drinks." I wondered to myself while playing swing with the suspended little man on my possession. Seriously, maybe they fell because they realized how horrible God's sense of naming is. Kokabiel and Azazel… Kokabiel-Cola and Ramuzazel… Thank God mom gave a pretty badass name, fitting for someone like me. "Well then, I guess this is all. Since you don't have the names of the devil princesses here in Kuoh, I guess this is what you can give me."

"He'll kill me, y'know." He stated, and I so-boringly turned to him. "He said that a piece of shit like me, not even the deepest parts of hell would want me, so he would completely erase me from existence. I just accepted it because he said I could be spared if I could kill at least one of the Maoh's sisters, but now that I've failed, I'm dead to him, and if he doesn't kill me, the police around here will if they catch me like this."

"I don't care." I said nonchalantly. I seriously don't, today no one died, so I can assume this is a perfect end for now. However, he looks at me.

"So… You're gonna kill me?" He asks. I turn to him and blink once, twice. A serial killer with over six digits over his belt and with a Sacred Gear that can cause mass chaos with those too ignorant to do anything. He is a menace to society, hell, to the whole human life if left alone, and killing him would probably spare others of the horrors of what's to come… But then again, I'm no killer.

"No, I won't." I said back. "You're a piece of shit, Mr. Tyrion, a complete and utter being that has no right to be called a human, and a coward who follows others and now tries to win my pity, something I rather not give even by my standards. But I won't kill you… But I shall give you three conditions and I want you to follow them through so you can have your freedom, no questions asked. 1. I want you to stay away as possible from Kuoh and never to use your Sacred Gear around here as long as you live. Get it?"

"Tch. I get it. After that accident and once everyone notice all the students here, I want to stay away as possible from this blasted city." He answers. Good.

"2. I want you to give me all your money for all the damages you caused me and my classmates. Once you lose, this is the least I can expect from a loser."

"Son of a… Okay, fine. Just pass me your number and then I'll transfer all my money to your account or something." Oh hoh, that's kinda neat. A guy like him having all the balls to make such declaration with a straight face. He notices my sardonic mental note and scuffs. "Tch, you saw what the blobs leave once they turn into jelly, of course I would rob them as well. I'm a killer but I know how this world works. How do you think I travelled around the world without a penny on me?"

"Fair enough." I scoffed with a laugh. "And now, 3. I want you… To give me that switchblade of yours."

"…!" And unlike my other requests, this one shaken him the most, as suddenly he shot his eyes at full force at me with horror and terror, but before he could say anything, I snapped from his clothes the switchblade, the small silver weapon covered in blood that was his only weapon against me. Just by seeing me with it, he lost it. "No… No, please… This blade is everything I have… This is my companion ever since I remembered, and I killed all of my victims with it… Please, don't take it away from me… If I lose it I'll…I'll…!"

"Too bad. Think of this as a warranty between us, that I won against you regardless of whatever you tried to pull on me." I said flipping the blade on my hands. It's such a nice weapon, too bad it ended with someone like him. But after what happened today, maybe I do need to find myself a weapon of a sorts… But not this one, I shall bury it somewhere sacred and beautiful so the people he killed with it can rest in peace once at for all. I turned to him, and he started to cry and sob like a child.

"P-P-Please, I'll give what you want! Here, take my wallet! My number and my cards! J-Just don't take my blade away from meeeee~…!" I picked all the things he offered me, yet still didn't return his blade, and since he's suspended by the foot, he can't reach me to try to pick it back. "Please, it's my only Friend! He has been with me since I can remember! This is everything I really have! This is everything I really am! Give me back, I beg you! GIVE IT B-…!"

 ***CUT!***

"Sorry, pal. You're too dangerous to be walking around with this. Consider this your passport to freedom instead." I said, cutting the wire holding him with his beloved switchblade and making his face fall flat on the floor, now his tears and mucus wetting the floor and leaving a darker area. Still no sympathy for me at least, but he's alive, and when you're alive everything is possible in the long run. Then he stopped with the crying and whining. Oh, maybe the fall put him to sleep at last. I wonder if he's going to wake up and escape before the authorities come.

Whatever, turning around and walking towards the exit gate, I can already hear the sirens of the police and the emergency coming to help those who got caught in our little fight, while myself, all things considered, can take care of those problems at home. After all, when he melted me back inside while trying to suffocate me, he also melted some of my skin to cover all of my wounds, so I'm just a little sore, but without any more bleeding. I guess this is fallen angel genes for you…

Speaking of which, now I know a lot more about this new world of mine. Mr. Ikuse was right, I am starting to view my surroundings in a new light, but now, not only I know there are devils crazy and stupid enough to come to a town as boring and uneventful as Kuoh, but I have now someone looking to kill them, someone who might be close to my fallen angel father and might compromise my quiet days at Kuoh because of that, because of my fallen angel blood, because of my General Governor father, just like he's looking for those devil princesses...

And his name is _Kokabiel_.

…

Eh, better not think about it too much for now. I need to find a good place to bury this blade and make all the souls killed by it rest in peace finally. Maybe while I'm at Hokkaido eating crabs with Yuki, and can bury it around Kaminokuni. It's only a given, really…

* * *

 **Wow, what a chapter! O hope I didn't end up too confusing considering it's my first time writing such an intense battle-filled chapter. Maybe I was, but i hope I did a good job regardless!**

 **Also, considering my OC... I received a few reviews saying that Kokuto is, how can I say, too hated by me? Too much like a doormat and how his wish for a life is strange? Well, to be fair, those are the first chapters, but I guess this is the sensation someone like him would leave. But I want people to know this: I DON'T hate my OC, nor everything he goes through is gratuitous. I like to think those are more or less like writing tools that not only expand the world around my mc who knows nothing about the dxd world, but also subtly tells how he is. It might look like he's a doormat and a complete loser when compared to other mc's around in this site like other writers here in this fandom and you might be right, but consider this: He wants a calm and slow life. He doesn't want a harem(for now), he doesn't want to dominate the world(for now), he just wants a cozy and effortless life and, as you could read this chapter, he did everything he could to assure this. You can also notice that he doesn't want or search for conflict but as we can expect, a lot's gonna happen from now on because of the fact that he knows realizes that being close to someone as important as Azazel paints a target on him he must and will do something about it now, and he kinda cares for people who are complete strangers for him, not to mention he's pretty smart but this is a thing for another chapter. Maybe I'm not being too direct for that, but this is what I'm trying to pass around, so I'm sorry if I mislead or misundertand someone reading this. But again, i DONT hate my MC, I'm just showing a different type of care instead of giving him a massive harem or make him get laid every day, like SOME writers tend to do.**

 **I hope you guys continue to read this story regardless of my mc and continue to enjoy more of it. Your opinion is always important, so leave a review and make an author happy!**


	5. A Fool's weak heart

**Sorry for the late chapter, some things have come up, but I'm glad that I've made it through alright. This chapter won't be as action packed as last time, but for now we dwell even furhter into the mind of my little protag and his little thoughts on his misadventures. Not to mention, around this chapter that the story starts to merge with canon, so be prepared for some surprises and harem candidates... Probably. Don't forget to R &R, because this always makes a healthy author happy.**

 **DxD belongs to Ishibumi and his respective magazines. All rights reserved for such.**

* * *

 _'... As for bodies, we recorded at least the death of 100 students and 4 teachers, all who received proper medical attention but died shortly after, and more than half of that in a critical condition that doesn't paint the situation any more favorable. Authorities seen to have lost track of the assailant, who is currently on the loose and possibly claiming more victims… Now, turning from America to Japan, at this evening at Kuoh town authorities have found the body of international mass murderer and wanted criminal known as Tyrion Lannister, among the unconscious bodies of several students and teachers in Kuoh academy who, despite their proximity with the murderer, have no victims, although a few injured. The individual, a criminal who claimed over 200,000 lives in his year as a mass murderer, was found with his body completely burnt and surrounded by gasoline with a lighter at hands. Authorities suspect of suicide. In other news…'_

Well, guess that's settles it. I guess not everybody wants to give redemption a chance, go figure. That's too bad, but I don't want a Mr. Tyrion knocking on my door and saying that he'll help me with my problems now that I've helped him see the light or something, so maybe that's a plus. At least I still got his cash, so all is well when it ends well, I guess…

I turn off the tv and decide to put my feet on the coffee table while leaning myself deeper and deeper on the sofa. I flinch a little, but then take a deep breath. The wounds are not too deep and the bigger ones closed during my time as a melting candle, so while my body is a-okay, the muscles and articulations will be hurting for a while.

But in the end all is well when it ends well, nobody died, and I still got to keep the cash a mass murderer saved throughout his horrifying and bloody ordeals, not to mention I also got this nice switchblade which killed 288,000 people, which of course I'll bury it somewhere sacred and beautiful for the souls killed by it to rest in peace for once. I'm not that religious, even now that I've discovered that I'm the son of a literal fallen angel, but a bit of ceremony is good once in a while, and it'll lift some guilt over my shoulders. I wonder if when I die I'll be going to heaven even though I'm the spawn of one of its defectors…

I'm thinking too much like that, I shouldn't be worrying at all. Mr. Ikuse said he won't be bothering anymore, and just like Mr. Tyron has shown, if all Sacred Gear users are as dumb and complacently dependent on their own divine weapons, all I need is a bit of luck, pluck and a bit of brains to work things out. Besides, I can't be the only bastard son of that Azazel man, so he probably gonna find someone else to worry and teach about. So all I need to do is sit back and relax like I was supposed to do, and if problem arises again, I can always find a way, as long as I'm alive. After all, luck always sides with Kokuto Kurokami, no matter what! Hahahahahahah! Aahahahahahahahah…!

Ahahahahahahahahah!

Ahahahahah…!

Ahahah…!

Ahahah…

Hahah…

Hah…

…

…

…

…

 **FUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUCK…!**

 **What the hell was all of that about?! A mass murderer, just around the corner in Kuoh academy! Also looking for people to kill and in compensation trying to eliminate two unknown devil princesses in it! All by the orders of a Fallen angel! It wasn't even me he was looking for! I was going to be just a casualty from a terrorist attack, dying like a damned stray dog for no reasons at all, just side damage for someone else! I could've… No, I WOULD've died if it wasn't for prior knowledge of all of that shit, and even so it was a pain to finish that bastard just like that! I would've died then and there, and no one would bat an eye! NO ONE WOULD HAVE GIVE A DAMN NOT EVEN THE KILLER! I WOULD BE JUST A NUMBER IN COLLATERAL DAMAGE, NOT EVEN BEING A TARGET AT ALL!**

 **Not to mention… He said something about being threatened by a fallen angel, working for a fallen angel, whose name is similar to my supposedly father's. So this is what Fallen Angels are recruiting and searching for people like me for, this is why Azazel is looking for me! I have a Sacred Gear and I'm his son above all else ,of course he'll try to search for me and ask me to go around and murder devils on his behalf, just like this Kokabiel guy looked for a mass murderer in order to assassinate the 'sisters of the Maou'! He probably sent Mr. Ikuse to intimidate me in order to join this Grigori thing, and he only didn't wreck my shit up because I won against him fair and square! Even so, he giving his card and now Mr. Tyrion attacking Kuoh can't be a coincidence! Azazel and Kokabiel probably planned this, kill the devil princesses and me as an extra among the collateral victims, and in case I panic, I would've called Mr. Ikuse to help me in exchange in joining their terrorist organization! And now that he failed, they'll probably try this again!**

 **They're probably planning something as I think here, or maybe there is already a plan in motion! I gasp a large lump in my throat, only to choke for all the nervousness. This is getting out of hand, but what should I do?! Do I call him and let myself become a terrorist, a mass murderer just like Mr. Tyrion, or play the sitting duck game in their sick plans to get myself into the Grigori, either joining them anyway or die at their hands?! Amidst the two alternatives, one even worse than the other, I can only come with a third and final conclusion, one that will put a stop in all of that game…**

 **… I must _kill_ Azazel. **

**Yes, if I kill the head of all of that madness, a very powerful one at that too, maybe Mr. Ikuse will see I'm serious about not joining them at all! I picked the switchblade I got from Mr. Tyrion and walked towards the front door, my cellphone at hand and preparing myself to kill someone. I just need to call him for him to take me to the Grigori, met this Azazel person and then when he's talking about me or mom or with his back turned, I will reach for him and kill him! Aiming for the neck, a swift cut on his carotid artery and a slice up his throat just in case! Don't leave the knife on his body, take it as quick as possible for the blood to pressure itself outside his body! Then another cut on his guts in order to make his internal organs stop functioning, slice off his tongue so he won't be able to scream for help. Break his neck? Cut his pulses? Stab his heart? All should be done to be sure he'll be deader than dead, and even so, rip off his head just to be sure! Burn everything later so he won't survive!**

 **Yes, that's the perfect plan! Kokuto Kurokami just wants a quiet and calm life, and whoever tries to disturb him should be either pushed aside, and if they insist, then only death and pain awaits them! If Azazel wants me to join his group of terrorists, then I hope he's ready for a surprise of his life! I just need to pretend I want to join and then get him alone with me, and with just a swift cut of this switchblade, my calm and quiet life shall return back to normal! Just crave this knife deep into him, and then everything's going back to normal! I just need to kill him! I JUST NEED TO KILL HIM!**

 **…**

 **…**

…

Just kidding.

Who am I trying to fool here? I'm just a high school student trying to live the spring of his youth without a problem. I'm no murderer, and even if this Azazel guy wants me so bad into his terrorist group, he was nice enough to invite me instead, so maybe I had the chance to refuse. He doesn't seem like a bad person for that, and even his 'persuasion tactics' were a bit on the nose for inviting a real serial killer to play, I still got the upper hand, meaning that regardless, I can deal with this. It's not like he has his own experiences and is not waiting for me to stab him on the back or something…

Also, what is this? Some kind of wannabe-Shakespearian drama? Killing family, or someone for that matter, would only make matters worse, and I don't have either the time or the patience to deal with this bullshit. He's my father whatever I like it or not, so even if he doesn't have been there ever since I was born, I rather play Stab beetle battles with him and maybe some Mario Kart than straight up murder him. We could go to Tokyo Disney too, but I doubt a Fallen angel General Governor like him would like to spend his time on rides like that. I'm also a teenager, so those things don't interest me as much...

I dropped the switchblade and made a little prayer for all the souls who lost their lives to it, returning to the living room to sit on the couch and watch some tv, wondering how the weather will be for the rest of the week. What was that all about? A spurt of the moment? I'm glad it was all over, and since I'm all calm now, I can think clearly. Even if those attacks keep happening, I just need to be extra careful and take care of myself during moments of crisis, and whatever happens, happens. I am the man who has luck by his side, and no God, fallen angel, devil royalty or even lost relatives will tell me what to do. I live my life as I want, and as long as I'm not bothering anyone, there is no problem in that, right?

Even so… Today's incident was something else. I just barely escaped alive, and after what happened to vice-president Shinra, I understand that not always I will have the upper hand. Today was my lucky day that no one died, but if that Sacred Gear did kill people, and if I've dropped Vice-president again… Ughhh~. And Mr. Tyrion was just a novice in using his own Sacred Gear, meaning there is someone out there probably with a Longinus or something just slightly weaker which can indeed part the earth in half or something, and is just waiting around the corner to harass me. This doesn't bother me as it should, but even so it does give me a new perspective in things. I need to get smarter than that, or else is over… Crap.

I need to be more humble.

 ***TURURU~!***

"And now what?" I cursed to myself, turning my attention to my cellphone on the other side of the couch. I took a quick glance at the name written on the caller-ID and cringed a little seeing that my mother is calling, the person who started this whole mess, not by her own accord or something, but still guilty. I sigh, pick up the phone and put it next to my ear. "Hey, mom. How's it going?"

 _'Heeeeey~, how's my dear and lovely son doing it today? I hope well, you know mama just sent you a present from here from the Germany!'_ And the one who picks the phone is no one other than my mother Yozora Kurokami, the Keio Alumna who despite being quite the genius has the spirit of someone around my age, despite being more than twice as old. Even so, I smile hearing her voice after so long _. 'It'll be coming around a day or two, also mama is coming back in one or two weeks! I hope you don't feel lonely during this whole time, Kokkun!_

"Hey, mom. Glad to hear you're alright. But again, you should stop sending those gifts every time you go out on work. They're starting to pill up in my room." I respond with a sigh. No joke, from just her last trip she bought me an ashtray made out of fine mahogany, a golden lighter and a bolero hat. What the hell, I don't even smoke. I hear her pout by the other side of the line.

 _'Aw~, but they're so cool and shiny, and I know you love cool and shiny things! Also, they are such nice gifts to leave at the house and show to guests! Imagine people thinking from where I bought that Mona Lisa picture made from soda cans, or that glass shark statue!'_ She explains herself, and I'm mostly sure the ones who bother to make those in first place are probably psychopaths or college dropouts. Even so, better not question her, if she thinks is cool, then I have no reasoning with her. I look at the glass shark statue on the table on the wall. It does look cool, in a lame way. _'Okay. When I come back, we can go to Ikebukuro and buy a karaoke machine! I feel like singing some AKB48 for old time's sake!'_

"Oh my God, mom…" I curse under my breath. Good thing I'm a lonely loser with no self-esteem and no friends to invite home, or else this would be such an embarrassing call. Sudden realization catches me by surprise as I turn my attention back to my phone. "But say, mom, some things happened back here in Japan, and I caught myself thinking about something…"

 _'Oh-hoh, so my, little Kokkun has grown quite a bit, hasn't he? Oh well, nothing your darling mother can't help you with! Although I can't still tell the difference between a CD-player and a Blu-ray disk, I shall help you as I can!'_ She says so confidently, her brightness brimming from the call as I grow even more annoyed, even if by a little bit. Some say she might be too confident and naïve, but that's how she is, and she raised me like this, so I have no complains. Even so… I straighten up my voice.

"Okay then. Mother, do you remember anything about my father?" I asked.

 _'…'_ And in response, silence. Understandable, after all, would it be shocking for someone like me, who grew up without one, to ask about my own father just now. It's not like I don't think my mother didn't raise me well and nice, after all, I don't actually care if I grew up with a single mother or not, but it kinda worries me that she might not know the greater picture of this whole situation. I hear her hum a little under her breath. _'Well, Kokuto, what makes you interested just now? Did some hobo came down to our house saying that he's your father or something? You know very well where I keep my pepper spray, right?'_

"Well, almost that. But I'm just asking because I met someone who might know who he is." I explained, putting myself sitting straight on the sofa to concentrate myself at the conversation. Still nothing from her, so I sigh. "I'm not judging you or anything, mom. Just making sure and sorting things out. You don't mind, right?"

 _'Of course not, sonny. I know how much you love your mama. But unfortunately, I have no true recollection of your father. I do remember meeting him during one of my trips to Europe around Vatican… Maybe?.'_ I hear her pout again over the phone, and that only melts my chances of truly knowing my origins. Not that I care, of course. However, for a split second after such declaration, mother snaps her fingers and let out a loud 'ah!' as in she's having an epiphany or something! _'Oh, but there is one thing that I do remember about your father. It might not be much, but it does paint him a bit clearer on my head…'_

"Really?" I inquire her back, and in return she hums positively.

 _'Yes, I do remember that… He was a major hottie.'_

"…"

 _'I mean, I know that it might not sound much considering that I was not used to the looks of some foreign people, but I do remember that even there he was such an eye-candy~. I almost fainted when he invited me for a drink or two and before we know it, we started sharing beds and stuff!'_ She starts to tells me so-dreamily about her encounter with my supposed fallen angel father, and I start to regret every other decision I've made in my life so far. _'He was nice and pretty rich too. He had some friends he'd hang out a lot too, but he'll always meet with me after his meetings for some nights out. It was only when you grandpa got sick that I had to leave him and go back to Japan. I don't even remember his name. Crazy, aint it? But it sounded like… A carbonated drink or something? I dunno, it was a very lame name_.'

"Uh-huh, I get it." I responded, putting the pieces together and coming to the conclusion that Mr. Ikuse was right, my mother did sleep with a fallen angel. A fallen angel with the name that sounds like a carbonated drink. Now I have doubts no more, and I am seriously reconsidering which is worse.

 _'When I came back to Japan and I discovered that I was pregnant with his child, I seriously thought how much a son would weight on me as well. But then I remembered: I am Yozora Kurokami, and nothing holds me back, so I decided to keep you, my sweet little seed, and go on with my life! And there you have it: I am a professional businesswoman with a healthy son and financial stability! Although dad's inheritance saved me from a lot of trouble too…'_ And now she's talking too much, and I feel a bit attacked right now. Is it too much to think that this Sacred Gear was passed down to me or something? Who knows? Maybe I should clear this one later with Mr. Ikuse _. 'Come to think of it, you really remind me of him, and your black hair is just like his! Probably, maybe, I dunno, I don't quite remember…'_

"Okay, that should do it. It was just out of curiosity." I said back to her and she signed to me with a happy hum and a nod, like someone at least half her age. I have the feeling that in the end I have more questions than answers for that conversation, but eh, better not bother her too much. "Okay, mom. So, how is it there in Germany? Is it cold or something? Don't go out without a coat if it is…"

'Bleh, you're not my father. Don't worry, your mama is made of steel, she won't fall that hard on the German winter this time! Have faith in me!' She pumps herself up with a determination that only hers truly can muster, and then let out a laugh as if she's laughing at her own joke or something. 'But yeah, mama just sent a few of those cute german mugs for beers!'

"Mom, I'm still 17, I can't drink."

 _'Aw~, but they're so cute~. They'll look soo~ nice in the kitchen counter! I felt like our house would look so dull and boring without those around! Besides, when you hit 20-something, we can finally use it like some good wine~. Don't you agree, Kokkun? Don't you agree with mama~?'_

"Okay, okay, mom. I'll receive them after school and put them on a nice place on the kitchen counter, I promise. Just don't cry, okay? Please." I try my hardest to appease the little temper tantrum she's blowing onto me through the phone since she sounds she's about to cry or something. I mean, one more present from Germany doesn't sound so bad, as long as she doesn't overboard on them. Also, it's not like I don't like them, but I won't use them in public. Ever.

 _'Huhuhuh, as your grandpa used to say, a woman's tears are men's biggest weakness. But thanks, Kokkun, you're always so reliable, it's nice.'_ She laughs under her breath and I sigh in relief for everything going so smoothly. Suddenly, I hear something far away into the call, as if an alarm was ringing or something, making my mother gasp in surprise. _'Oh Goodness, look at the time! Sorry Kokkun, mama has a reunion scheduled that she mustn't miss for nothing in her world, not even her cute son! I'll have to brush my teeth and take a bath beforehand too! So I'm hanging out! I'll call you tomorrow if everything runs fine! Mama loves you, Kokkun! Ah, and don't forget to be home when the delivery comes! And be sure nothing is broken, and if some of them are, you know where the glue is, right?'_

"Yeah, yeah. Good work for you, mom. See you in a few weeks or something." And then I ended the call with one final kiss through the phone, returning to look at the news on my tv.

So I have no doubts anymore. If anything, I should trust Mr. Ikuse by now because of mom's own words. She might be an airhead, and if that wasn't enough to get herself killed by a fallen angel, then this Azazel person cannot be that bad of a guy.

But again, fallen angel, not a very safe or trustworthy kind of existence considering that angels weren't supposed to do that, if my mind serves me correctly. Also, after what Mr. Tyrion said to me, about this other fallen angel named Kokabiel, I have my own doubts regarding Mr. Ikuse's true nature as a 'good person'. I even doubt my own father's nature as a 'good person', considering that he spared my mother. But then again, I spared Mr. Tyrion, so this is also debatable. Can I trust them, can I trust Mr. Ikuse and his claims about Azazel? Or maybe I should just avoid them like the plague? This is really tiring, I wonder if this is how adults think about life. In the end, with all the revelations from today, not even my classmates I can trust seeing that at least two of them are devil royalties, and because of that Kuoh was attacked in the first place…

No one home, someone is stalking me and searching for me, and everyone in my school can be not even human. I have nowhere to go or run to, or believe, but if I don't do anything, I might die or worse. But what I can do, anyway? This is… The first time… I have been… So utterly… _Alone_.

…

…

 **[If your heart is wavering, then do not Shoot, Kokuto. Find the path that you think is the truth, then shoot with your luck's content. Otherwise, your soul shall wither in the darkness…]**

"…?"

 **[…]**

"Huh…?" It was just a second, a small second of nothingness and silence, but I suddenly felt something, no, someone, lingering just around my back. I turned around, but before I knew it, it was gone. Like some sort of ghost, a shadow, but I felt someone just walking behind and whisper those words on my ears. I looked behind the couch, the floor, and even the kitchen next to the living room, but yeah, I was utterly alone. What was that? For the small glimpse I had from it, it looked like a tall woman with long hair, but for some reason, she had… Cat ears? And a tail. Am I imagining things again? Maybe all this much thinking is starting to affect my brain as well. I hear something meowing, and no turn to Tama, my cat and Sacred Gear thing, snuggling on my leg. I lightly pat it on the head, and I sigh, drawing a smile. "Maybe I am getting a bit too old. But still, maybe I'm jumping too much into conclusions; I should wait a bit, and find a way. When you're lucky, there is always a way When you're alive, there is always a way."

Yeah, I am the man who has luck sided with him, but shall not rely on it too much or else I might break my own mind. I can wait, and when my heart finally stops wavering, I can finally take my own decisions and open the path that I know is the 'truth'. I am one of the few who can claim such, so I can't waste it. I know who and what I am, and so my life shall continue the way I want, no matter what.

Huh, maybe seeing things for a different perspective might not be so bad…

* * *

And so the life of Kokuto Kurokami resumes the worst way possible…

Even after all that big talk, I still didn't sleep that well. Not because of the whole assassination attempt thing though, as one might expect, but because I decided to watch that ' _Pet Sematary_ ' horror film and as expected, couldn't blink much after that. I wonder if there is a Sacred Gear that works just like that cemetery, that would be both really cool and really alarming, mainly because it would be kinda nice to see grandpa alive… As long as he doesn't yearn to eat my brain or outright kill me.

But, oh well, another day, another walk to Kuoh academy. I yawned a little on my way to school seeing other classmates of mine gathering in small groups to chat with each other, talking about what's trending or what they will do during classes. Hah~, that sounds like fun, I want to join then so bad and talk about something useless, but the moment I try to approach them, they look at me and walk away. Oh right, people actually don't like that much.

"Go to hell, Kurokami." I hear someone say right next to me, and before I knew it someone kicked me in the shins and shoved my briefcase on to floor, making me stumble a bit more. Before I could identify my own assaulters, they disappeared among the crowd of students, leaving me alone, everybody else looking away or just ignoring me. Sigh, and so my life in Kuoh academy resumes.

I wonder what Yuki's up to.

 _"Kyaaaah~, you're awesome, Lady Shirayuki!"_

 _"She's such a figure! We love you, Lady Shirogane!"_

 _"Yeah! Just like that, Shirogane! You are an idol to all of us!"_

And I spoke too soon. Speak of the devil… The moment I walked down the entrance leading to Kuoh academy and into the school ground, I hear the name of my not!girlfriend being practically ovate by a group of voices, and turning around I see a small group gathering on a single spot near here. I wonder what's the fuss is all about. Normally, those school affairs wouldn't bother me that much, but I can hear my not!girlfriend being praised of some sorts, and being Yuki, I can only assume it's not a good thing, or a really bad thing. Whatever, I follow the voices of appraise leading me to the heart of the conflict, a small dome formed by other classmates of mine. I tried to contact the closest students there, but was seemingly ignored by them. I shrugged off the idea of an direct approach so instead decided to merge into the group and try to reach the heart of the whole conflict, where more and more praises are being thrown. When I finally reached the heart of such, I could see the reason behind all that fuss...

 _"P-Please, no more… I beg you, just stop…"_

 _"W-We promise not do any more perverted stuff, so please… Leave us be…"_

 _"It hurts… It hurts so much…"_

And there she was, My not!girlfriend Shirayuki Shirogane, in the heart of that whole conglomerate of students, but she wasn't alone, oh no: lying on the floor, holding their own wounded bodies in pain and puddled in their own blood, there was three students that, even being a transferred student, I know very well: Motohama, Matsuda and Hyoudou, the perverted trio of Kuoh academy, known for having the most lewd and depraved libido of the male population of the school. But now, they look more like bystander victims on a Tarantino movie.

"Well well, so now after all that you've done to the girls here, you try to pray for mercy, I don't think so." Yuki claims under her breath, cleaning the spit of blood from her nose and walking towards the glasses guy, I think his name was Motohama or something. He flinched just seeing Yuki's shadow being casted upon himself, looking up at her. "So, you must be the good-for-nothing scanner pervert, right? You have such a good eye for measurements, right?"

"I-I… I…"

 ***STOMP!***

"Try scanning this, then." And before he could say anything, Yuki shoved her sole into his face, the sound of a breaking nose and cracking glasses were not only louder than the cheer the crowd gave for that. As if it wasn't enough, Yuki started to rub her sole onto Motohama's face, spreading the shards of his glasses all over his face, scratching all over it and making it bleed even more. In the end, she pushed his face away as he lay on the floor, moaning in pain holding his own face. He was sobbing and crying, tears mixing with blood and aqueous humour, yet everybody's still cheering. When I though it was over, she turned around and kicked his face once more, making him spit blood and fall on his back. The crowd cheered again, even more when she turned to the other pervert. "And you are the baldy pervert, right? The so-called lolicon? Sounds about right, I guess."

"P-P-Please, I'll do anything you want… P-Pleas-…!"

 ***CRASH!***

"I want you dead." She claims, and Yuki again started with another session of torture, this time stomping on the baldy's crotch, making me gasp and choke on his own, letting out of whimper of pain and fear. As expected, she didn't stopped there, as she suspended herself on one foot on top of him, letting all of her weight be on top of his crotch as he would scream in total pain, no reaction from her. It got into a point she was practically standing on the tip of her toes on him, and I could see she was practically flattening his jewels, making me shiver a little bit, doing small jumps there as well, something that made Matsuda have something of a seizure, foaming from his mouth. "I wonder… If I castrate you like that, you will stop being a pervert."

"P-Please, n-…!"

"Too late." And with that, she gave a little jump and landed her toes right on Matsuda's more sensitive part, and for that, he let out a mute scream of pain, face contorted in pain and despair as Yuki's shoe was now touching the floor through his crotch. She then jumps away and kicks him in between his legs just to finish his job. Matsuda rolls around holding his jewels for dear life with bloody pants and bile, blood and tears coming out of his mouth. Yuki then turns to the last pervert there, slowly walking towards him. Unlike his friends, Hyoudou tried to reach a hand for her, but failed and let it fall onto the ground… Or rather, it would, if Yuki didn't stop it with her feet. "And you, Mr. Tit-obsessed. You must be the worst of all three. I won't say that you better off dead… But you better off dead."

"You… You…!" He tries to say something, but Yuki shifts her position of her feet, in a way her sole of her shoes is now touching the insides of his extended fingers, stepping on his fingerprints as the upper part of his hand barely touches the ground. Oh no, don't tell me! Hyoudou also notices his position, and his eyes widen in response. "…!"

"I'm gonna break them now." Yuki declares, pushing his fingers back with the sole of her foot as if she's trying to stomp the back of his hand with his fingers in the way. Little by little, she puts more and more pressure on Hyoudou's fingers, as they twitch and turn red, as if fighting to stay in place, something that shall not happen.

"Stop… St-…!" Too late. Hyoudou's plea for mercy were muted by one loud and sudden ***CRACK!*** , enough to mute everyone here as well, me included. It took me a few minutes to realize what happened, but when I turned to see Hyoudou's fingers, which were now laid on top of the back of his hand on a grotesque position. Not just that, the upper part of his hand was also broken. The wail Hyoudou let out was so deranged, so alien to me, it sounded like my soul was being ripped to pieces.

But after that… Cheers. More and more cheers from my classmates, all saying how 'awesome', 'corageous's and 'virtuous' Yuki was being, even after just witnessing someone practically suffering a Brazilian torture scene! Hyoudou on the other hand rolled around holding his damaged hand, whimpering and crying in pain as yuki would sigh under her breath. Why? Why is she doing that? I know they are perverts, but c'mon!

"Don't cry, Hyoudou. I'll make the pain go away." She declares, all falling on deaf ears for a whimpering Hyoudou, as she starts to lift a foot. However, before our very eyes, I see a small golden flash crossing all the way to the heart of the show, and before I knew it, someone just stomped on top of Yuki's foot, in a way that made her stop on her tracks and violate the trio no longer. I blinked a few times, and saw the author of that rescue: The prince of Kuoh academy and the favorite male student around, with his beauty marks decorating his pretty-boy face and ever-present smile despite the situation. Just seeing him makes Yuki blink in surprise. "Oh-hoh, Kiba. May I ask why are you doing here and now? I was just… Defending myself from those troublemakers, just that."

"Sorry to disappoint you, Miss Shirogane, but something tells me that this little punishment went a little overboard into 'torture', right?" Kiba says under a smile, however, that carries a hidden hint of malice among it. Yuki groans under her breath, but seeing how the female students around us would now fawn all over the Kuoh Prince, she put her foot down literally and took a few steps back. Kiba smiles again. "I'm glad for your comprehension. Allow me to take care of things as for now, I know what to do when Issei… I mean, Hyoudou gets out of control like this."

"Yeah, yeah. I'm sure you'll know what to do with him, Kiba." She waves him in disgust and disdain, something that he accepts it incredible well, making all the other girls so-dreamily moan his name. So he's one of 'those' people, eh? The popular people.

Picking Hyoudou's shocked body, Kiba now walks to the other side of the crowd, but not before flashing one last glimpse at Yuki as a warning. She looks like she didn't notice a thing, but for some reasons that stare sent down a shiver up my spine. Once the duo was out of the picture, the crowd once there dismissed, only a few coming closer to cheer on Yuki one last time before heading to their respective classes, leaving me alone with my not!girlfriend. Ah, it looks like that little interruption put her in a foul mood of some sorts, since she looks really pouty now. I walk around to face her, and still looking at Kiba and Hyoudou, she let out a small word between her lips, not louder than a whisper…

" **Faggots** …"

"Yuki, how can you say that you don't want to draw attention if you do something like this?" I call for her attention, and as if I was just a ghost lingering around her ,she turned a surprise look at, soon relaxing seeing it was just me.

"Ah, it's just you, Kokkun. I thought it was just a small disgusting housefly trying to bother me, but it seems I was almost correct." She shrugs, so as I did, and so we started to walk towards our classroom, receiving, as always, stares from outsiders.

"Yeah, yeah." I yawned a little. "I don't know what you're planning now, Yuki. But what did the trio do for you to lash on them that way? I know they are quite the nasty bunch, but for that to turn into a torture session, they must've done something quite disgusting, right?"

"No, they really didn't do anything today." She declares with her hands on the air, making me hum in confusion. "They didn't do anything today. It just… I woke up very irritated today, maybe I'm in that time of the month, so I walked into those three losers to let out some stress and steam. Honestly, punching the scum of society is somewhat cathartic. Must be the overdriving pheromones."

"Wait, they didn't do a thing? And you practically crippled then for the lulz?" I questioned her. I have nothing against her venting her frustrations, but to mark someone, even the Perverted Trio, like that for no reason at all it's a bit jarring. Even more, she had a whole crowd cheering on her instead of calling the police or the ambulance, I can only assume those things just make it worse. "What the hell, that's sick, Yuki. What if you get suspended or expelled for that? I will lose my one and only girlfriend and my sense of superiority over my peers will disappear. I'll just become a good-for-nothing dateless virgin from before…"

"Don't worry, Kokkun. Even if I, say, break all of their bones, capture them and cut them piece by piece with a sharp blade, put their remains on formalin frames and sent them one by one to their families like a mob boss, I would never be punished for taking care of them." She declares with her arms in the air, making me grow even more and more confused. "Do you know why? Because, in the social scale of the micro-society known as Kuoh academy, they are the dead last members of such. So, they are the perfect targets for my days."

"I don't get it."

"It's very simple: they are popular and shining people like me, there is the mob like you, and there is the scum like Hyoudou and his two friends." She declares counting each on her fingers. "The ' _scum'_ , Hyoudou and his friends, are the lowest part of the social pyramid. They are hated, despised, scorned by the other parts due to their lecherous behavior and overall presence. Money, charisma, personality, nothing of that matters when a large portion of the people hates them, and so, I can treat them the way I want and people will praise me regardless. After all… When you trample over hated people, you're nothing but a hero. As such, as long as I have them to beat, I can be as hard and violent as possible and even be seen as a 'nice person' for that."

"So you're foiling Hyoudou and the others." I came to such conclusion, one that she apparently didn't appreciate much, considering the small scowl that was drawn in her face. I guess I get a little bit now: She looks for someone more hated and despised than her to bully and harass. Since she is the top girl around and the other are the so-called 'scum', people will cheer on her for beating an poor bastard who just so happen to have a few negative traits, while totally ignoring her despicable acts altogether. She's using Hyoudou's infamy to get away with her beatings and behavior since nobody will care. This is… Really screwed-up. "Just so you know, Yuki, there are some people who can see through little plan of yours. It's not because Hyoudou and his friends are considered scum that everybody will ignore how horrible you're being with them."

"People here are idiots, Kokkun. I can be as horrible as I want, and people will praise me as long as I target the ' _scum'_." She claims with a tongue sticking out, and then she taps my head a few times in a gentle gesture. "Why do you think people target you instead of me as well? Because it's not because ' _I_ ' have a boyfriend, but because someone like ' _you'_ have ' _me'_ as a girlfriend. For them, I am an idol, and you're just the senseless guy who is getting in ' _their'_ way to get ' _me'_. It's a bit romantic, really."

"Yuki, we need to talk about how you face our relationship." I sigh under my breath. She stops her little mantra about social pyramids and turns to me, blinking a few times in genuine, yet bored curiosity, no, scrap that, interest. I know we have been in this kind of fake love relationship of a typical rom-com manga, but we really need to put our cards on the table and discuss our current situation before one of us gets killed, or more fingers get broken, whatever comes first. Yuki on the other hand completely turns to me and makes a Buddha pose, arms on a L-shaped form, one hand cupping one of her cheeks with the other cups her other elbow.

"How I face our relationship? What are you talking about, Kokkun? Isn't that obvious?" She inquires with a bored yet composed tone, looking at me deep in the eyes with her dark orbs. I honestly have no idea of what to expect from her question, so I simply hum into her direction. In return, she closes her eyes, hums back and then sighs. "You're my boyfriend, and I'm your girlfriend. Therefore, I'm your owner, and you're my pet."

"Wrong." I waved a negative one for her, and in return she pouts. Seriously, I might have 'Kuro' in my name but not because of that I'm a pet! Yuki sighs under her breath and looks disappointedly at the floor, as she was about to cry or something.

"So, does Kokkun think of me as his pet instead? That isn't very nice." She pouts in a bored way. Oh my God, what's with that idea that a relationship is like a pet and an owner? "I mean, I feed you with delicious dishes, I humor you with my presence and jokes, and honestly, I feel a lot safer when you're around defending me from stalkers and other losers who wants to get funny around me. I can't think of you of anything else but my precious pet Pitbull."

"That's really cute and your line of thought is adorable, but it's still wrong, Yuki." I craft a half smile with that declaration which is really cute for some reason, but stay strong so she won't tangent this conversation with her own inputs. She sighs in a low, tired tone yet again, her face contorting in an expression that makes me think she's getting annoyed. I need to get rid of that poisonous thought, so with a hand on my forehead, I began. "I know our relationship is a fake one, but try to behave a little more normal, keep your ego and wrath down if you want to keep up with that bravado."

"Ugh… Getting scolded by Kokkun is the worst feeling." She gasps in silence, voice dripping with poignant words and a sour face that makes me think she's in great bore. "How low have I, Shirayuki Shirogane, have downgraded myself into if a friendless, lonely, nonathletic, dumb virgin like Kokkun has to scold me? I guess this is the cross someone like me has to bear to have a boyfriend. Indeed, I'm such a martyr…"

"…" Okay, that was just rude and honestly she's starting to get on my nerves. Who the hell she's calling a virgin, anyway?! Wait, this isn't the problem here. I dodged that little pat on the back she gave it to herself and gulped a hard one to think of something that might help me get pass her. Still, that hurts a little. "Look Yuki, I really appreciate the little lecture, but please try to not to frighten or bully other people, I already got my own life to take care of. And besides, ain't that going to tarnish your fame, ms. 9th most popular girl in Kuoh academy."

"I guess you're right. I complimented you, so it really shows your level of speech." She shrugs with a face I can only assume only listened to half the things I said. Eh, no matter, if she says she'll behave normally from now on this is already a step forward. The most sensate thing would be to dump her in the face of the earth and never bother to look back, but I won't do that. "But I must correct you in one thing, and one thing only: You got no life, Kokkun. The sole reason for your existence is to be my boyfriend."

"That's mildly annoying, to say the least." I waved my hand in front of her before her deranged mentality could reach me too. Like she didn't even think about it, she continued with a blink or two between sentences.

"You got no friends, you are always alone, so the only reason why you exist is for nobody but me. I'm the reason for your existence, so you better appreciate that." She touches my cheek with one of her fingers, and now it was my time to annoyingly turn my head away and grunt. Well, she is right about the fact I got no friends, **NOT BECAUSE I DO NOT WANT TO IN CASE YOU FORGOT** , but that's a very heavyhanded way of thinking. Is that how rich spoiled girls are supposed to see the world? "I know I do, having a boyfriend like you."

"Tch, whatever." I sigh under my breath as she removes her finger on me and instead puffs a satisfied cloud of smoke out of her system, as if she's silently celebrating her own victory. She knows how to play with me, and even if all said and done, the whole school body is dancing on the palm of her hand. But It doesn't last much since now she instead reaches for the pocket on her skirt and hands me a small wrapped ball, some sort of candy? I unwrapped it and swallowed that little piece of brown hardness, and indeed, it was candy. I should really start pondering my life choices instead of chewing things down my mouth without a second thought. "Good."

"And that's that. You should really start appreciating me more, Kokuto. I might be a rich, spoiled girl, but I'm the softest one you can encounter right now." She says with a smile and a light blush. "Besides, I decided that I'll pay all the expenses to our little trip to Hokkaido. I hope you get sharp for it, anyway."

"Still about that?" I sigh. It's not like it's a good plan for the golden week, but now that I've seen another side of Yuki, I can't help but to be a little scared about what this little trip might bring, considering that she's also aware of my situation for being her not!boyfriend. "Wonder why you want to go to Hokkaido with me? After all, as you said, this is just an act, I'm not your boyfriend for real."

"Yeah, but I do want to eat some crab, and eating it alone is also quite the letdown. Not to mention, I have quite a few obsessive fans, so the moment they see me alone, it's over." She sighs, pinching one of my cheeks. For some reason, that doesn't hurt as much as I thought it would, and with that I see a few glimpses from Kuoh's windows. Are those cameras pointing at us? Creepy. "Besides, eating _crabs_ (カニ) alone makes they taste like _clams_ (カ一) instead."

"Don't justify your monophobia with a pun. It doesn't suit your style, Yuki."

"Nice response, Kokkun." And with that one last piece out of a comedy sketch, we entered Kuoh academy for another day of classes.

Of that's what I thought, but all came down shattering once I saw a bouquet of roses on top of my table. It was something really out of this world. What's going on, am I really receiving a confession in such a romantic way? Besides, despite being roses, they seem a bit too healthy even by professional standards, whatever that means. I wonder from where they came from? Or maybe it can be just a prank.

"Huh, Kurokami received some pretty flowers. How lame~." A classmate of mine said behind my back, while cries of hate and curses were being thrown on my direction as well. Ah, that's nice, to receive flowers like that, but is still kinda strange. From what purpose, exactly? They are too pretty and healthy to be just a prank from a classmate of mine, and from the smell they exhale, I can tell whoever sent those wanted to please me a little. But why? I picked the small bouquet and put it on a nearby vase on the coat hanger next to the door. Before I could even reach to my table again, I hear a small sound coming from above. An announcement this early?

 _'Kokuto Kurokami, your presence is being requested in the Student council room. Please present yourself as soon as possible. That is all for now.'_

And just like that, the announcement ended. Just me, an announcement alarm rang just to call me and nothing else…

Something tells me that I'll figure the reason behind those roses sooner than I expected.


	6. Darker than black, part 1

**And here it is a new chapter! Sorry for the delay, real life can be a real pain sometimes, but here it is! A new chapter! In this chapter, Kokuto meets with the student council and merges a little with canon. Would it be too drastic for our protagonist? Maybe, but anyway, enjoy the read, R &R and take your conclusions!**

 **DxD belongs to Ichiei Ishibumi and its respective magazines. All OC's on my end!**

* * *

And here I am, in front of the student council room, just a few knocks into talking with the president of the student council and the third most popular and powerful female in Kuoh academy, Sona Shitori. After what happened yesterday, I shouldn't be bothered in meeting such a frail-looking girl, yet I am, I'm a bit hesitant to knock and be face-to-face with her. Maybe some people are naturally frightening for others, not to mention her status and face creeps me out so much, I don't know why, wonder why she has such a following as well. Maybe it's the glasses, it might be the glasses, because everything else about her is kinda plain, but she does have that Yamato Nadeshiko vibe around herself, but still, she's kinda creepy…

 ***Knock! Knock!*** I knocked a few times on the old wooden door, and by the other side I can hear steps, a bit of mumbling and then the sound of a lock being turned, the knob by this side turning as well. The only who answered the door was Vice-president Shinra, and when we met eyes, she blushed a little and nodded at me, and so I did the same.

"Good morning to you, Kurokami. Miss President is waiting inside." She says to me, and then let herself be engulfed by the darkness of the room. Like I said, she might be a bit better than the president, but she's still creepy as hell. But in the end, I'm glad she's okay for what happened to her yesterday, can't say the same for my shoes and pants though, good for her. "Please, close the door once you're in."

"Okay then. If you excuse me…" I lightly tapped the door open and as requested, closed the door behind me only not really, I left the lock slightly jam so it'll be easier to open the next time I open it, just in case. I did in a way that no one would notice, and so I turned to face the president of the student council of Kuoh academy, Sona Shitori, sitting across her table in the room, her bespectacled eyes shining violet at me, only making my discomfort grows even more. I slightly turned my eyes elsewhere so I wouldn't have to stare at her, taking my way into. "Hello, president Shitori. You called, didn't you?"

"Yes I did, Kurokami." She says without breaking a single sweat, and that makes my heart skip a bit. I don't like being here, I don't like being here at all. Taking a better look around, I can see that the rest of the student council is here as well. However, unlike one might think, they have no such following around Kuoh, so I don't know the names of any of those people, except maybe Tsubasa Yura, and yes, she's as masculine as the girls claim her to be. I turned to President Shitori again, as she signs to a chair across the table in front of her. "Please, take a seat. I want to talk to you."

"No, I'm good standing up, president. Don't mind me." I waved at her to shake off her offering, instead supporting my hands and upper body on the chair's back, earning from her a upwards brow. Yeah, I'm not sitting there, especially when I don't know what she wants with me, so in any doubt I won't let my guard down at all. The others also look at me surprised, but I sigh a little and open a smile scratching my back. "Sorry for that, President, but I drank some bad milk this morning, so I'm suffering from a bad case of stomachache. I might burst in some brown note if I'm not careful, so better not sit here for now, I don't want to make the student council room stink or something, it might be bad for your reputation."

"I… I understand." That one ended up a bit too crude, so no wonder why she looks a bit stunned by my choice of words. Even I am a bit embarrassed for having to resort in such eschatological excuse, but this is the only one I could think of, considering my position as a dumb and young high school student. This will also make herself brief as possible. "Very well then, Kurokami, you might position yourself like that, I won't mind. However, if you excuse me, the matters for which I called you will need your full attention: Tell me, did you hear that murderer that was found around Kuoh yesterday?"

"Not really." I shrugged to her, trying my best to actually hide the bandages on my arms and chest for yesterday's confrontation. Better I fake some ignorance and escape this situation as fast as possible, something tells me she's well aware of what's happened and why it happened, considering that she has Vice-president as a witness. However, she might not know my entire participation on yesterday's terrorist attack, so better keep it as secret as well. "I'm sorry, president Shitori, but I have no idea of what you're talking about? Murderer? Here, in Kuoh? W-Wow, that's scary and stuff. You see, miss president, I don't use the internet, so I have no idea of what happens around. You see, I don't use the internet!"

"I see." She blinks a few times at me, then turns her eyes to vice-president Shinra, who silently signed with her own stare back at her. The dark-haired brainy beauty of Kuoh academy turns back at me. "So let me explain to you what happened: a few days ago, a murderer known as Tyrion Lannister escaped from a maximum security prison and has been spotted near the beaches of Japan. As for yesterday, his scorched body was found among the victims of what seems to be a massive somnolence attack here in Kuoh academy, and if I remember correctly, you were assigned to clean the upper floors at the same time. So I ask you, Kurokami: do you have any recollection of what happened yesterday before going home?"

"…" I make an uneasy face in order for her to not notice my sudden shift of attention. That's right, I have no alibi for that, she knows that was I there yesterday, not to mention I also talked to her and stuff. No matter how much I would want to dodge that one, she knows that I was here and I wouldn't abandon my chores that way. And since Vice-president is here too, so president knows the whole process of how Mr. Tyrion's sacred gear works. I can't lie, but I can't tell the entire truth either. Think, Kokuto, think! "W-Well, not really. You see, Miss President, when I was finishing my chores around the time we met, some guys from the third-year ended up kicking my bucket of dirt and making me start all over again. The last thing I remember was going to the janitor's closet… And falling asleep there and then! Y-Yeah! I remembering falling asleep when I was about to pick up a broom and some other cleaning products! Yeah! That is what happened!"

"I… I see. Is that all?" She wide her eyes and blinks a few times, turning her stare elsewhere deep in thought. Yes, I did it, I planted the seed of doubt into her head and turned her own alibi and argument against her! It would make sense for someone as hated and bullied as me to have to deal with some incidents like these on the daily basis, and so I'll just have to shift the blame of my ignorance on something plausible and matching with my current situation. She arches her eyebrows once and adjust her glasses on the bridge of her nose. "Do you… Know the reason why you fell asleep?"

"Not really. Maybe someone mixed ammonia and bleach kinda spread around. I myself could feel the scent of it before passing out. How do I know this? My mother can be an airhead sometimes, don't worry." I declare one more time, and suddenly, I could see a small glimpse from her eyes, and for some reason after that, a small headache invaded my head. Ugh, what now? Am I seeing things again? No matter, I think I got her where and how I want, so I just need to play things out a little more so I get out of here. "I'm sorry for falling asleep like this, president Shitori, I have no one to blame but myself. If that's the reason why you called me here, I'll gladly repay you and the school the way you think fit with any more chores or something, but for now…"

"No, this is fine Kurokami. Seem that everyone also fell asleep during the same time, I guess I can't actually blame you." She sighs and I puff a cloud of smoke in relief. Okay, fine, she doesn't suspect of anything, and even if she did, I had the perfect excuse to dodge her question. You go, Kokuto. Slow and steady wins the race, with a bit of luck by my side as always. However, it doesn't seem that has ended, as she picks my attention again. "But I do other matters to talk with you about: I heard from vice-president Shinra that you have been subjected to… A certain type of abuse by your classmates. Even if she didn't have told me, I see that some students have not been treating you very kindly. Tell me: does this bother you?"

"Ah, you mean all the name-calling and the sucker punches? You don't have to worry about it, president. They are not a problem for me, they're just the guys playing around." I wave my hands in front of her to pass out some security on her hand, but that didn't seem to work. But on the other hand, this is good, it means I could disperse her attention away from the incident. President Shitori arches an eyebrow again. "I'm serious. Being bullied has always been a thing for me! They would make fun of me because of my absent father, my airhead mother, my stupid name, I'm used to it! Don't you worry about anything, Miss President!"

"Are you sure? Even by the standards here, there seems to be no limits for the cruelty on you. I heard that even the female population sees you in an unfavorable light. I know that being a transferred student in a new environment can make it difficult to make friends and acquaintances, but please be aware that we can be of your assistance." She declares, and I actually felt that one. Huh, so the student council president is getting worried about me, this is kind of romantic all things considered, but not exactly my thing and not unexpected, she is the leader of the student body after all, it's only natural for her to grew worried about her school's reputation. "Is there anything that we can do to help you in that case? You know that if the bullying goes too far, you have all the rights to contact us."

"Thanks a lot for the help miss president, but I think I can deal with my problems just fine. It's not like anything that comes from below reaches me." I say in a deep and confident voice in order to radiate some on her as well. She might have the best of intentions, but I don't want to be target even more than I am now, if people figure that the third most popular girl in campus is covering my back, the abuse will get even worse, and if anything, I'll be forced to commit a crime or something, and I don't really want to do that. Besides, I know how to take care of myself, and if anything, the reason why I am targeted is because of jealousy. People are jealous and envious of me, and that subtle sense of superiority is not bad. Not at all. "I don't know how pampered or spoiled you were, but I can assure you, it doesn't sound as bad as it seems. This is just a typical treatment for someone like me, they're just jealous of me, so I'm just being the bigger person and not letting their petty words and actions reach me."

"Kurokami, I apologize for my words, but I am unable to follow your reasoning. Are saying you enjoy being bullied?" She asks me, and for some reason that ticked me off a bit. Now I doubting if she's really Japanese in that regard, but maybe there's more to it than I could expect, Mr. Tyrion did say there are devil princesses roaming around Kuoh. It makes me wonder a lot. She stands up from her chair and adjusts her glasses one more time, deeply looking at me with those big purple orbs, like she's trying to stare back at my soul. "Make no mistakes, your endurance and resolution to avoid troubling yourself and the student council is admirable, however, as the president of the Student Council, I can not turn the blind eye on it. You might think I am pampered and spoiled for not knowing how it feels like to be bullied, but keep in mind that I know how one feels when others abuse and belittle them, and I came here in Kuoh to learn how to deal with such. I know how much one suffers for being underestimated just because how they were born, and that's why I'm say-…"

"I'm sorry to interrupt Miss president, but let me explain in a way that you can finally understand: I don't _want_ or _need_ your help. I can take care of myself, thank you very much." I interrupt her with a hand in the air and cut her mid-sentence, making everyone here except for me to gasp in surprise. I don't know who she's trying to fool here but all things considered, she doesn't know how society works at all. "I'm sorry if this sound rude, president Shitori, but keep in mind that I know how to take care of myself and those bullies, and your assistance would only make things worse. I'm not being bullied because I'm weak, fragile, on a lower step on the scale on anything, on the contrary: I'm being bullied because I am superior, I am or have something they don't and they hate me for it! They're jealous of me, and their petty attempts to bring me down and scorn me is hilarious on my end! Honestly, for you to think I'm being belittle because I'm weak and frail is also funny, and also pisses me off because I feel you're also underestimating me! Please, I'm Kokuto Kurokami, the man which lucks always smiles upon! I don't need a babysitter like you to take care of me!"

"…!" All of the student council fell in silence, but the one who looks more shocked at my laughs and words is the president herself. Huhuhuh, to think I'm being bullied and abused because I am like a loser, what does she think I am, some kind of lame protagonist of one of those western bullying films or a sports manga? Quite the opposite, in fact! I am the true winner of life, and every loser is jealous of me and my good luck! Also, the way she looks at me pisses me off too, it's like she's looking down on me. I know she has the best of intentions, but I can't help but to feel attacked by her sympathy. "Kurokami…"

"In short, Miss President, I appreciate your good will to help me, I really do, but as for now, I don't want any of it. Don't think just because I'm being scorned I am a lesser being or something, quite the opposite. Also, if you really think that assisting others will help them… I'm sorry, but that kind of dumb mentality is what causes inflation and spoiled brats!"

"How dare you…!" And one of the students in the room, a boy around my age with short light brown hair and grey eyes, practically exploded next to his classmates and tried to reach for me being held by the others. Oops, I think I may have pressed some of his buttons, his stare is also making me a bit nervous. "Making fun of President and her dream… How dare you…!"

"Saji, down. I'll handle this myself." But before he could take a bite out of my skull, president Sona turned to him and stopped him on his tracks, commanding him like one would command a puppy or something. Oh-hoh, so she also has some kind of admirer in her own group, I'm not really that surprised, really. She turns back at me to resume our conversation. "Sorry for that, Kurokami. While I don't agree with your methods and believe that are other ways to deal with such, I shall condone your behavior as long as they stay away from physical matters. But make no mistake, the student council will inform me about any forms of abuse deemed too extreme and I will take the appropriate matters, whatever you allow it or not. You might say all of that, but I believe… That you are a good person, Kurokami, and you don't deserve that."

"I have no problem with that, president Shitori. After all, it is your job to make this whole school function properly. But I believe that you have bigger matters to attend to, so you don't have to worry about a small fry like myself. You have better things to attend as the president of the student body." I shrug but sincerely give her my sympathy and support, since that regardless of her position, she is a good person. Besides, if I end up meeting with either Mr. Ikuse, my own father or one of those freaks again, I might get in trouble to explain myself, and since she's the president of Kuoh academy, I have the suspicion that she might know the devil princesses around. "I'm sorry for everything I said, I just wanted you to know how I feel a bit. You're the good person here, Miss president, no doubt, but what makes you think the same for me? Maybe I am being bullied because I am such a rotten person, ever thought of that?"

"Kurokami…!" The one who manifested herself however was vice-president Shinra, who took one step forward to me and was about to say something, but the moment I turned to her, she blushed a little a took a deep breath, taking a step back to next to president. President Shitori turned to her, then to me, nodding understandingly.

"I just know, Kurokami. I just know. Despite everything, I am sure you're a good person. Even if you are not, I won't tolerate this kind of Abuse in Kuoh." She declares, her aura and determination are overwhelming, it almost blinds me for how bright there are. Yeah, no doubt, she's a good person, almost makes me feel bad for all the things I said, but she's the one who's too naïve about how this world works. Even so, her presence is sending chills down my spine, and not in a good way, it's almost suffocating.

"Okay, okay, president. I understand, and I won't stop you." I nod at her, and for the first time, I can see a small smile on her lips, a small smile of satisfaction. She's elated that we could end up in an agreement, but little does she know that she's actually the loser on my end to get her off my tail. I look around and I think I'm think she's the only one who doesn't get it how this impasse ended on my favour. In the end, standing up from my support of the chair, I pointed at the exit door. "So, huh, may I go now? I'd love to stay and chat, but classes start in a few minutes. Besides, people might not like that I'm spending time with you and I'm not part of the student council."

"Of course. You may go now, Kurokami." She says with a sigh and looking back at the paperwork on her desk, I took a look at the other members of the council, and besides the guy who snapped for some reason, I think his name is Saji or something, all of them lost interest in me and gathered their own materials for classes. I shrugged for no one, and took my way to the exit door, but not before taking a few steps backwards so they won't surprise me or anything. I'm still in hostile territory, I shall not leave my guard down and take a hit from behind. Heh. As expected, Miss president called for me one more time. "But, Kurokami, please do not forget about our conversation. I will hear any complains or calls you want to tell me, so don't hesitate to look for me."

"Sure, I understand now miss President. Now if you excuse me." I say bidding her one last goodbye and saluting my way out of the student council room. It took a while but my back touched the door and then I noticed the flimsily closed door, I didn't even have to turn the knob, pushing it was enough to open space for me to pass through and see myself out of there. Once out, I closed the door and took a deep breath, taking my time to pounder that whole situation while supporting myself on the wall, and only coming to a single conclusion: "Man, president Shitori is such a pain."

Yes, I mean really, who she think she is, my mom? Asking if I'm having problems at school and worrying about my health, she has no idea how that would hurt my pride, if I had one to begin with. But I can't deny that she has the best of intentions, as the president of the student council should have. But I can deal with my own problems alone, it's not like it has spiraled out of control yet. Still, better do something about it before she gets too worried and starts following me only to discover the terrible secret from within. Huh, since when I'm starting to bother what she thinks? Not really, I just want her away from me…

…

…

*LICK!*

Oh, I did it! I finally did it! I licked my own elbow! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH! WHAT A FEELING~!

Okay, better go back to class before they start and the professor gives me a note or something. Before I could take the first step however, I took a single glimpse to the side and noticed my senior Akeno Himejima looking back at me. She frowns and turns forward to the stairs. That was kinda weird, but for reason that same dreadful sense runs down my spine like a chill, and I can see she was also affected by me for some reason. She's another person who has this creepy aura around herself, despite not looking at different from me and unlike president having some charm and physical attributes that I wouldn't mind, so why. I wonder if there's any connection between her and miss president…

I really wonder. Maybe I should keep an eye on her as well while maintaining my distance. She's scary.

Her boobs are scary.

Boob monster.

They'll eventually sag and become flesh kneecaps, and then I'll laugh at her.

And probably die from a heart attack.

That would be funny.

…

Why do I keep having those random thoughts in the middle of the corridor, maybe all that poison and pain from yesterday is messing up with my brain. To think I almost threw up my whole dinner yesterday, but fortunately no more pain or lasting injuries, I wonder if this is thanks to my fallen angel anatomy. Ah, I'm thinking too much again, better take my way to my classroom before the bells rings.

When I reached it though, I was surprised to notice another bouquet of flowers resting on my table, and again acidic comments and mean whispers talking behind my back. I look at the counter next to the hangers, and yes, the roses from before were still there on a pot, not to mention that unlike the first bouquet, this one is with camellias instead. So pretty. I took it from my desk and took a closer look, only to notice that, unlike the first one, this one had a little note coming from it, which read:

 _'I heard that someone left a bouquet of roses on your desk. Camellias are more on your look' – **Shirayuki**_

That's cute, now I have a secret admirer and my own not!girlfriend giving me flowers, I feel like an idol for some reason. What was it again? Red roses symbolizes love, while red camellias symbolizes also love, but everlasting love. Besides, no thorns. I picked the roses that were on the pot and replace them with the camellias so that everyone can see that I have a not!girlfriend while all of them are lonely losers. What should I do with the roses, though? Maybe I can give them to miss president for being such a nice person, or maybe give them to mom when she comes back home. Ah, but she's allergy to it, so better scrap this idea and think of a better one. Alright, alright, what to do with this roses…

…

…

* * *

"So you gave those awful, ugly roses for the perverted trio back at the medical room? How thoughtful of you, Kokkun. I must say, won't they start calling you a faggot for that?"

"That's the least I could do after you broke some of their bones and crippled them for life. And don't worry, I said for the nurse to say they received it from a busty pretty girl, so no worries."

And lunchtime arrived in a flash, at least it looks like it was in a flash since I couldn't pay attention to classes and instead sleeps during it, and now I'm here on my desk and chair eating my lunch while Yuki combs and styles my hair, which she claims was a mess. How did I get rid of those roses, you ask? I just gave them for the resting perverted trio on the medical bay and told the nurse to say they were from a secret pretty and busty admirer. That's the least I do after Yuki have wrecked them this morning if that will make them a bit happier for breaking a few bones and lost some expectation years.

"I must say, Kokkun, your hair is very smooth and pretty. It's almost a joy to have to comb them. I'm even a bit jealous." She says while passing her slender, cold fingers across my head, as I hear some mean comments from my classmates for that. Maybe the hair is also from Azazel since mother herself have light brown hair and I could see from the photo he has black hair with some bleached tips, like some kind of try-hard delinquent wannabe. How lame~, but not unexpected from a fallen angel. "What kind of product do you use? Or maybe it's superior genes? Your mother must be Laura Burdese for you to have this kind of hair."

"Not even close, but she does buy a lot of Acqua di Parma once in a while. But because she has pretty bad hair." I declare as she now picks a comb to straighten my hair and push some of them behind my ear. I must admit, it feels nice to be spoiled by a pretty girl. Maybe it's the sense of superiority?

"Oh really? That's nice, to have hair this smooth and silky. Maybe it's from your father's side?" She asks while I let out a grunt under my breath. "That would be embarrassing, for a man to have this kind of hair? He must tell a lot of embarrassing stories for you, eh?"

"I've never met my father." I declare back at her, and for a second, she stops her combing. There was a moment of silence between us, and another, and another. I was starting to get worried about her, so I attempted a look at her, and she looked shocked there, only to take a deep breath and return to comb my hair while I turned back forward.

"Oh wow, that sucks, Kokkun." She simply says. I expected her to sound a bit sad or even regretful for touching that subject, but she just said that in her usual, bored tone. "But look on the bright side, you must've saved a fortune in Father's day gifts and Christmas and alike, not to mention that none of your clothes must have been pass-me-down and without a husband your mother has only you to spoil."

"Funny thing, I thought the same thing." I said with a small chuckle, and she also let out a small giggle to herself. I bet if she's said that to anyone else, she would've receive quite the beating regardless of her status, but eh, It's not like it matters then, now or ever. In the end, she pulls one of my bangs and puts a small clip there. She passes me a mirror in which I see my own reflection, the dark-eyed young man with black combed hair with a sword-shaped hairclip on it. "Huh, neat. Thanks, Yuki."

"Your hair might be beautiful, but without the proper care it'll fall apart, and you'll be bald before your thirties. Honestly, why does my boyfriend has to be so careless in such matters? Are all men like this?" She wonders to herself, supporting herself on my desk and twirling her own black hair. She turns her eyes to me, blinks a few times then blushes. "I wish I had hair as beautiful as yours. That's so lame~, envious of my own boyfriend~. To think my hair is not as great as yours… Maybe only a crusade can fix that."

"Don't start a holy war just because your hair is not as good as mine." I retort her like we always do, and she let out a small laugh for it. I'm starting to think she only make puns like this for me to react to them, nothing is ever clear with Shirayuki Shirogane. And that what makes her so dangerous to think about. I wonder if she's the one who Mr. Tyrion was looking for, maybe that's the reason why she approached me at first. "Speaking of holy wars and hair, Yuki, say… If you were a devil princess, you would tell me, wouldn't you?"

"…" She eyes me with widen eyes, blinking a few times. A moment or two of silence between us, no words being spoken during it. The tension… Is almost unbearable.

"Yuki…?"

"…"

"…"

"Kokkun… If I were a devil princess… Do you really think I would… Be attending a school as lame as Kuoh?"

"…"

"…"

"Makes sense. Sorry for that." I answer her back. She's kinda right, whoever those devil princesses are, they are sure dumb to choose Kuoh as their base of operations. Everyone here except me and Yuki is an _idiot_ , and for enrolling here, so are those devil girls. That eases me a bit since it also means that, as long as I'm quick on the draw and down on my shoes, I'll be okay to deal with those idiot devil princesses. The bells rings announcing the end of another lunchtime, and as always, Yuki wraps her lunchbox and heads to her own classroom, but not before waving me one last goodbye.

"Goodbye, Kokkun. See you other time, and you can keep the hairclip." She waves at me one last time before disappearing behind the translucid door.

I also wave her one last goodbye, and sit back to yawn and rest my head on my desk, but not before touching the sword-shaped hairclip she gave me. She probably think I'm her toy or something, and I'll have to talk to her about this whole ordeal again, but not now, I'm just too sleepy today. Stupid Mary Lambert and Stephen King and their uncanny talent for horror movies, but at least the numbness is catching up with me now. So sleepy…

Before I could take my nap though, I feel something hitting the back of my head, waking me shot up head upwards in surprise and search for the responsible for such. I turned around only to look back at a bunch of hateful eyes from the male population, looking at me with such despise and hatred, I can only assume they're the usual losers who can't get a girlfriend or something. Heheh, now it's not the time to be feeling superior: I look at the floor, and notice a small crumbled paper on it with some words written on it. I picked it up and straighten up, only to notice: that wasn't just a projectile, but a letter:

 _'Meet with your fate behind the school after classes. Refuse it, and we will make it worse tomorrow. Call for the ambulance beforehand, asshole.'_

Oh, scary scary. A challenge letter, they would usually leave it on my shoe locker, but apparently it's not just one or two guys I'll be facing, but an entire gang or maybe the whole male population of Kuoh academy. A chill runs down my spine just by thinking about it, to face an entire band just because I have a girlfriend, I wonder if this is how an idol's boyfriend feels like, probably that's about it. I take one more last look back, and the stares just won't stop. Man, the feeling of superiority sure is nice and all, but the dread and fear won't just go away…

But if I don't go, it says things can only get worse from there. Anyway, anyhow, I'll have to face them regardless, and unfortunately I won't be able to rely on my luck on this one since I know I'll practically have to abuse on Tama to get out of that situation alive, or maybe ask the protection from Baki, but he's probably too busy fighting Nomi no Sukune III to bother protecting me. So I guess I have no other choice...

Just like the letter said, I'll have to go behind the school after classes and face my destiny.

* * *

…

Or at least this is what I thought until I walked to behind the school waiting to face a biggest gathering of tough guys ready to break every bone of mine, only to find a mountain of those same troublemakers drenched in blood and bruises pilling up to the skies, and standing tall with just a few scratches and bruises, the same guy I saw in the student council room.

Wait, what?

"Huuuh~… Hello? Saji? Is that you?" I called for him as he turns his silver eyes at me, snapping a few bones and making sure that all of the members of those piles of punks were knocked out for good. Once that was done, he turns back at me.

"Kurokami, so you came. I was just making sure that no one would bother us." He says. This makes no sense, whatever he's saying. Did he really beat all of those thugs by himself, no wonder he's part of the student council.

"Yeah~, you see, I think that the one who were to be expecting me were those guys, but since you took care of them, I guess the only thing I can say is… Thank… You…?" I slowly said to his accusing face seeing if I could see any change of expression from here, but nothing so far. That puzzles me, what does he want? "But I ask, why would you do this? I'm grateful, of course, but I don't think that someone like you would make sure a thing for me. Or maybe you just wanted to vent some violence? That's a bit frightening, a member of the student council being so violent."

"As if." He declares crossing his arms and pulling the sleeves up one of his arms. "I didn't want to fight with them, but they were in the way, so I needed to do what I should in order to talk to you."

"Talk to me…?" I ask. "Are you here by request from President Shitori? Or maybe you're acting like her black ops and dealing with her darker matters? Or maybe… ***GASP*** , You've fallen for me and now seeks for a way to get us alone to express your love? Look, I'm sorry, but I don't swing that way, but thanks for the intent-…"

 ***SNAP!***

But before I could finally stop mocking him, I hear the sound of something coming to my direction, and when I knew it best, a pale blue string of energy reached for me and strapped itself around my wrist! This feeling, this aura, is the same as Mr. Ikuse's Longinus and Tama's! A Sacred Gear! I turn back at Saji, and from one of his arms I could see a black chameleon-like bracer, which the line was coming from. So I was right, it is a Sacred Gear, and he has it! That or he's Rykiel from another dimension…

"Shut your mouth, Kurokami! As Sona Sitri's pawn and the member of the Student Council, I won't allow you to roam free around Kuoh anymore!" He declares, and I could sense that somehow that line of energy was sucking a bit of my energy. Wait, did he say something about being Sona's pawn? That information picked my interest. "Now, tell me Kurokami! What are your intentions here?! And was it you who started yesterday's attack on the students?!"

"Wait, what?" Did I hear him right? He thinks I was the one who attacked my classmates yesterday? I mean, that's a solid conclusion he came up with considering how dodgy I was back in the student council room, but it wasn't me! I took a deep breath and turn back at him. "No, it wasn't me who attack Kuoh yesterday, Mr. Saji. Besides, I have no ulterior motives to be here in Kuoh, if that's what you're wondering."

"I don't believe in that!" He exclaims, then why the hell did you ask?! Calm down Kokuto, remember, you have no idea what his sacred gear is and how it works, so better stay calm and try to get away from this situation without bloodshed. "You think you can hide from it, but president knows, she knows… That you are linked to the fallen angels!"

"…" I close my mouth, trying to hide my shock and surprise by the number of information I could gather from this idiot's mouth. First, the president apparently knows that I'm somehow related to a fallen angel, and second, she knows about fallen angels and those other supernatural stuff, and third, I didn't hear him wrong, he said that he's the pawn of Sona Sitri, which means that she is a devil princess, which leaves me to the fourth part… That president Shitori is stupider than I thought! There goes my pedestal for the president of the student council, what a letdown! I take a deep breath. "Mr. Saji, you're right."

"…!" He gasps, pulling his Sacred Gear and making me take a few steps into his direction due to the force on his side. He frowns even more while I try to maintain a straight face, as a small black string starts to come from my pinky finger.

"I'm Kokuto Kurokami, the man Luck always smiles upon. My name writes with ' _Black'_ and ' _Katana'_ , and my surname writes with ' _Black'_ and ' _God'_. My anniversary is September 9th; the name of my mother is Yozora Kurokami, age 37. My favorite movie is Rashomon, but my favorite actor is Clint Eastwood and my favorite musician is Toshinobu Kubota. I don't drink, I don't smoke but one time my mother mixed orange juice with beer and since then I don't like alcoholic drinks. My favorite food is strawberry shortcakes from a bakery next to my house but I ever so come there because of the busty and cute cashier who's the baker's daughter. And the name of my father… Is **Azazel** , the Goat Emissary of God. At least what I've been told." I said to him, and just by hearing Azazel's name he gasps in surprise, taking even a step back in shock. Also, from my pinky finger, the black strings grew and grew into it reached by my feet, and then started to wrap around itself on my hand, taking the form of a black cat made out of strings with the number ' _4M'_ written on its forehead in red, my own Sacred Gear. "And this… Is my Sacred Gear, _Tama_!"

"Azazel's… Son? But I heard that he doesn't have a child or anything like it… But then president was right!" He sharpens his eyes at me, and Tama hisses at him. I try to pull my side of that line of energy, but everything to no avail since every time I would try it, it'd suck my energies little by little. "So president was right! You are related to the fallen angels, and not just any fallen angel, but the leader of them!"

"It's true, I admit it. Since you know, no point it hiding it, anyway." I said to him. "But listen to me, whatever you might be thinking; I don't have any ulterior motives to be here in Kuoh. I didn't even know I was related to this Azazel guy until just a few days ago. So, Saji, could you just please untie your Sacred Gear so we can talk this out?"

"How can I trust you? You're a fallen angel, and as far as I know, their race is in war against the devils and angels! And as long as you're here, you're a menace to President and the student council!" He declares, giving me more and more information about this whole ordeal, like that apparently the student council is also composed or devils or angels. Isn't he just an idiot? But I can't let my guard down, I'm still tied to his weapon of God. "Maybe I should take you to prez and then we'll decide what we'll do to you!"

"…!" Shit, if he blows up my cover and a devil princess discovers my identity, then I can kiss my normal calm life goodbye! I try to pull his string of light off me one last time, but it all fails again. I clench my teeth. I turn to him. "Saji, I'm trying to be nice here. Please, until me and let go of this matter and then we'll talk about it! Please, trust me just a little, I promise I won't harm anyone or reveal your identity to anyone, so let me go and let's talk, or else!"

"Or else what? In case you didn't notice, I'm the one who has you with my Sacred Gear, [ABSORPTION LINE]! This little beauty is what makes me worth 4 pawns! Impressive, don't you think?" He grins at me, like I would have any idea what that means or would give a shit for that. His smile of audacity soon fades into a more serious expression as the line coming from his bracer starts to glow brighter, and I start to grow weaker. His Sacred Gear… It might have the power to absorb energy or something from others. "Now, just a few minutes and you'll be too weak to do anything! I must say, for being the son of Azazel, you have a pretty poor pool of energy. Even so, you're too dangerous to be near president Sona! I shall dispose of you and protect my dear president and cohorts!"

"…" That's nice and all, to defeat an enemy to protect friends and loved ones, that's such a cliché shounen hero quote, I'll give him that for saying something so embarrassing out loud. Even so, I won't be defeated like that, I'll just have to believe in luck this time! He's just one, so I can dispose all of _that_ on him like this! I take a deep breath, turn to Tama, and before he could say anything cheesier, I made a pose and finger gun him. "That's nice and all, Saji, but you might have me in shackles here, but I still have _updog_!"

"What?! What it's updo-…!"

 ***BAM!***

"Nothing much, what's up with you? **_Lucky~_** ** _⋆!_** " I finished with that cheap punchline as out of nowhere a lightning cut through out the sky and blasted him until kingdom come, making him screams for the heavens above, which wasn't loud enough to break the sheer explosion caused by the thunder. In the end, here he was, completely crisped by the power of the electric discharge as his Sacred Gear disappeared in thin air and breaking me free from his absorption line. I looked back at Tama, and in her forehead, the number went from 4M to a complete and red 0.

The thing is, the chances of someone being victim of a serial killer are, at the most probable, are around **4,000,000** to 1, while the chances of someone being hit by a lightning, in a clear day just like today, are roughly about the same chances. Apply simple mathematics and the logic only a weapon of a God can have an bam!, my ass is saved by toying with luck. I should really thank Mr. Tyrion in whichever part of hell he went, because without him I wouldn't be able to pull that stunt and save my sorry ass from this loser. I was saving that luck to win at the lottery, but eh, there's always next time.

Taking my time to catch my breath and check my own hearing since the lightning was very close, I now walk towards Saji's scorched body to kick him lightly a few times to see if he's still alive or something. My only response, fortunately, was him reaching for me and catching me tightly by the ankle. He isn't human, to survive that blast from the sky.

"You… You…!" He mumbles, trying and failing to move upwards, and instead opted to crawl himself on me. He really is persistent, isn't he? Either he really loves miss president, or he's a bigger of an idiot than I thought. Regardless, I can't leave him to die like that, I turn downwards to take a look at him, and show him a smile. "I won't… Let you… Touch prez…!"

"Like I said Saji, let's talk. Would you kindly hear me out now?" I ask, and he forces himself to stare back at me, a frown on his darkened face and teeth showing, in a clear display of hostility. I shove my shoe on his cheek, lightly nudging it for him to stop struggling. "Listen pal, I don't want to kill you or kill your friends or president Sona. I just want to live my life in peace, and if you kindly leave me alone, I might have some information for you to use onto your precious president or something. Trust me, if I was, I dunno, some edgy angst autistic loser with that same parameters and relatives as mine, you and your friends would already be dust by now."

"…" Nothing again, he just grunts again. I sigh a little. Man, why do I must always deal with the hard ones? Why nobody does wants to submit so easily? Maybe the supernatural world is just that stubborn.

"I won't kill you, and seeing you like that is kinda gross. So let's talk and sort things out, okay? If you behave yourself, I might have some information regarding another fallen angel named Kokabiel." I said, and once I echo the name of that fallen angel, he drops the sour face and makes a surprised expression. That's it, I got a reaction this time, I caught him! I smile and turn to his own souring face. "How about it? Like I said, I don't swing that way, but I guess I can spare some money on a coffee and some cakes, all while discussing about some Kokabiel and his really homicidal tendencies. Just for and with you~❤. How about it? Let's be friends, Saji~❤."

And he grunts one last time, but not before lowering his head and sigh in defeat…

Huh, maybe making myself some friends is not such a bad idea either…


	7. Darker than black, part 2

**I'm back with a new chapter! This time, Kokuto confronts Sona's most loyal servant and future host of the black dragon! No luck this time! Only wits and strength to stand up against the real threat of a devil! Kickstarting the first chapter of this year!**

 **Thanks for reading! R &R By the end of it, please!**

* * *

 _In Japanese, if you join the ideograms for "luck" (運) and "life"( 命), you'll eventually get the word for "Destiny"(運命). Therefore, by combining the idea of one's upbringing and own efforts, one's destiny might shine brighter than the others._

 _You might believe or not in luck; however, you can't refute the existence of probability, the force of nature that sets forth the laws of reality, being the chances of rain or sun tomorrow, the chances of one's become either rich or poor in the next day, being the simple toss of a coin. The infinity between 0 and 1 is what blossoms and withers the outcome of our lives, and therefore, the outcome of the universe._

 _Do tell, from the top of your head, what are the biggest discoveries in human history that wouldn't have happened if only by the breezes of fate blowing a little more on the un/luckier side?_

 _If it wasn't for a small breeze of luck, maybe Penicillin, the most widely used antibiotic in the world, would have left undiscovered by another couple of years, if not by the serendipitous accident of Alexander Fleming and one petri dish which was so happened to be mistakenly opened, leaving the Staphylococcus to be contaminated by mold._

 _Gravity and its laws, proposed by Isaac Newton, are on pair with Einstein's own discoveries and the theory of relativity. However, how slower of different would it tale be if not by any chance, Newton himself wasn't strolling around and by sheer luck witnessed an apple fall to the ground, and contemplate as to why of that. Such finite, insignificant moment of sheer luck, that helped Newton to become one of history's greatest mathematicians._

 _The Battle of Okehazama marked Nobunaga Oda, the Demon Lord of the Sixth Realms, as the strategical genius of devilish luck, who lead an army of 3,000 men against Yoshimoto Imagawa and his squad of 25,000. Would history be different if a thunderstorm hadn't incapacitated Imagawa's army or covered Oda's own? Who knows, who cares, Nobunaga triumphed over Imagawa and established himself as one of the most important warlords of the Sengoku Era._

 _Chernobyl's Disaster is considered to be history's most disastrous nuclear power plant accident which costed in both lives and money and 19-miles of area away from the aforementioned power plant. Was it sabotage? Was it a change of plans? Or was it Russians being Russians? None of that, but a combination of inherent reactor design flaws and the reactor operators arranging the core in a manner contrary to the checklist for the test, eventually resulted in uncontrolled reaction conditions. A ghost that haunts Chernobyl up to this day… Caused by a simple accident, a malfunction. A streak of infortune…_

 _During the Battle of the Somme in October 1916, a certain runner serving the Bavarian Army suffered a wounded thigh when a shell exploded on his dugout, forcing him to spend two months at a hospital at Beelitz. Roughly two years later, he would be nearly blinded by mustard gas, but survived nonetheless at both attacks. A streak of luck? Perhaps. The name of the runner? Adolf, who would later be known as the vilest person in history._

 _In this world, neither humans, or animals, or even Gods are safe from life, from luck, therefore, they are not safe from Destiny itself. The discovery of America, the assassination of archduke Ferdinand, the Rolling Stones, potato chips, David Carradine's last experiment, the simple fact of losing or finding money at the street; life depends of what you can or cannot do, and the universe follows the same rule of what it can or cannot happen. By the shackles of our own existence, we walk the path we can._

 _We, comma, me. I, Kokuto Kurokami, am the man who has luck by his side._

 _By the age of 7, I awakened this bizarre, strange ability that allows me to balance my own luck as I want. Say, if I were to drop and lose a few 10 yen coins, I could turn this unfortunate event into winning a small lottery and winning an entire bag of cheap candies on a nearby store. Or maybe a bird pooping on me turning into me finding a free-ice cream stick on the one I was eating._

 _The opposite also happening: Just by using tama to win a coin flip, I had a higher chance of being hit by a car on a busy road, or winning a lottery and becoming rich only to get hit a meteorite on clear daylight. It was during such time that I've also come to a realization: Life is unfair, the world is unfair. In order for one good thing to happen, a bad thing has to happen as well. In order for one to succeed, others have to fail. In order to happy, others have to live in misery. This is how society works, this is how the world works, chained by the shackles of fate and luck, we walk to the ultimate end imprisoned by destiny, by fate, by death. And among this unfair and cruel world… I alone walk alone as the one puppet who can see its strings, all thanks to Tama, all thanks to this Sacred Gear._

 _Even if nothing else but death awaits me by the end of this road, I live my life the way I want, the way my luck allows me. I am the one who controls luck, I am the one who controls fate._

 _I am Kokuto Kurokami, the man who has luck always by his side._

* * *

"And that was the last time that I watched any of the **Saw** movies. I like the effects and the gore and stuff, but after one of two more sequels, things become a little too stagnant, and even the shock value is lost. I wouldn't mind watching another **Terminator** movie, though…"

"…"

Ah, this is not working very much. I thought bringing Saji to eat with me on the nearest BBQ restaurant would break the ice between us, but even after ordering the biggest combo from the store and preparing the whole meats myself, he is still unwilling to cooperate. Maybe it has something to do with the fact that he's still all black and scorched from the previous lightning I had to unleash on him, the only difference now is that he borrowed an uniform from the student council so he wouldn't walk around with rags for clothes. But still, having a date with him of all people, two guys hanging out with no will both sides, that's romantic in some levels, none of them pleases me in the slightest…

So, from what I could gather, he's a devil, a devil servant above all else under the order of Sona Shitori, if that's her true name for that matter, and just like me, he has a Sacred Gear with a more direct approach to conflict than I. Also, he's a big idiot for trying on taking on me by himself, and for the record, President Sona is not as smart as I thought she was for choosing this school as her base of operations, maybe that's why she wants to look smart with those geeky glasses and chess-playing. Truly, today was a Rolle coaster of surprises and disappointments, and all I can do now is… Flip this piece of tongue on the grill so it won't burn out. Man, only now I notice how hungry I am.

"Aren't you going to eat, Saji? This order is way big for one person like me to eat, so dig in. I'll go preparing the meats, so just go ahead and enjoy yourself. My treat as an apology." I said as I flipped that tongue again and picked a piece of meat for myself, dipping on the sauce to take a bite out of it. He is still eyeing with such ferocious look, it's a bit jarring and all things considered it is starting to freak me out, maybe because he's a devil and I'm part fallen angel or something. Still. "Would you please stop staring at me like you have heat vision or something? It makes this date uncomfortable, and if you want to impress President Sona, you'll have to stop looking like you want to jump your guts on me. How about a small talk? I got a secret for you: Believe it or not, I have Situs Inversus. Pretty cool, huh?"

"…" Still no reaction. Gosh, this is unbearable, it was a mistake to bring him here of all places, not to mention spent a good dozen thousands yens here for some good food. I have no regrets of course but I should've ordered something cheaper for this. Maybe I can get him to loosen up if I talk about something he does care about? I picked my wallet and opened to show the small framed photo it has on it.

"Okay then, let's talk about something you do want to know about me." I said as I turned the innards of my wallet to him and showed him the framed photo I have from my supposed father Azazel that Mr. Ikuse gave me that day. You might be wondering why I have such a photo so close to me even though I have no desire to meet the person in it. The truth is, I have no idea, but I dunno, having such around gives me a sense of solace so to speak. He widens his own eyes in surprise, the first show of a different emotion ever since we got here, and stood up to take a closer look. "Just like you said, I am related to a Fallen Angel, and not just any fallen angel, but the… General… Gorvernor… Of them all? I don't know the whole story(lie) but I think he's quite the big-shot in the supernatural world or something. Care to fill me in?"

"Fallen angels… Are one of the biggest enemies of devils, like the angels themselves. And Azazel is the leader of them all, and therefore our biggest foe, specially from President Sona." He starts to speak, turning now his usual scowl against me again. For that, I try not to draw any strong emotion besides indifference, but now that I have this attention, the tension of messing everything else is making me sweat. I just have to remain calm or else. "For what I could learn from President, right now there is a truce between the three factions among angels, fallen angels and devils and they are even trying to make a peace conference with all of them. However… There is a thin line between war and peace at stake! Any wrong move might… No, will compromise the progress of this whole treat! And without it, President's dream will be jeopardized! And as her pawn, her dream is my dream, so it's my job to prevent any form of threat that might come against that! Including getting rid of possible intruders and saboteurs in our school! Which include you, Kokuto Kurokami, the son of the fallen angel Azazel."

"…"

"…?"

"Dude, stop. You're… You're embarrassing us. Don't say those shounen lines in public unless you want people to think you're a lunatic. Just… Just stop staring at me, Oh my God~." And I couldn't take it anymore, just hearing him talk like this, like a typical shounen Jump Hero, is making me feel the worst case of secondhand embarrassment like ever. I tried to shield my face away from him so people won't associate me with this lunatic, but it was too late, people were already staring. Uh, this is lame~. I pull him closer to speak to him in private. "Would you kindly don't spurt those in public? This is really lame, and I might not know what is going on with that head of yours, but this is not the time or the place to have an epiphany, so please chill down and let's enjoy this delicious meat meal that I paid for you."

"Tch." He slaps my hand away very rudely, and I sigh sitting back on the my seat, as everyone around would either turn away from my stare or just talk among themselves about us. I just have to calm down and take the reins back or else I have the impression he will continue to pester me. He is an idiot of the biggest caliber, but he has tenacity and loyalty for President Sona, I'll give him that, not to mention he knows more than me, so that also puts me at disadvantage. So far now, I should do what one has to do in disadvantage. I smiled.

"Sorry for my rudeness, Saji. You just spoke me, and in all seriousness, if you're looking for a confrontation, sorry to disappoint you, but you won't find it in me. On the contrary, I might even give you a good time, if we're able to find a middle ground from this little conflict of ours." I say in a low and calm tune, but that doesn't seem to faze him in the slightest, nor see any signs of him relaxing. He's still on his guard, but I just shrug it off and I continue with the talk. "Our little battle ago was just a little… Slip from me, and honestly, compare to you, my Sacred Gear is not as direct or as dangerous as yours. Besides, as I'm saying, I have no intention of bringing harm to either you or President Sona."

"And how can I believe in you? Fallen angels are not known for being honest at all. Besides, I heard from president that some of them have been around Kuoh for quite a while. How I can make sure you're not one of them?!" He shouts again accusatorily, and another piece of information he drops on me without even noticing. As I was saying, he's quite an idiot, but a harmless one, I'll take that as a warning that I should look over my shoulder more too. I just continue to smile throughout this interrogation.

"Oh please, Saji. I just discovered my heritage as Azazel's… Son a few days ago too, and as you could see, my Sacred Gear is more indirect and less effective than yours in combat. Even if I am a fallen angel hybrid, Azazel's son above all of those, I think I won't be a match for you at full power, let alone President Sona. That would be suicide, and I do like to live, thank you very much." I shrug again, and his expression doesn't lose focus, but I can see that he starts to relax a little and lose part of his scowl. Those are half-truths by the way, I am really not looking for any fights against supernatural creatures with Godly weapons, that's just both stupid and suicidal, but I think I won't have a problem in kicking his ass if I wanted to. Now, I should try to enter his mind and maybe find a breach for him to leave me alone. "But do tell, why such devotion to President Sona? You did say you are her… Pawn? Or something? Is this some kind of play?"

"Huh, so you really don't know? I guess you are telling the truth, then." For the first time since we got here, he opens a smile, or more like a cocky grin, as he stands sit up all tall and mighty like he would announce something important. "But you're right. I am a servant from the House of Sitri, the pawn of the heiress Sona Sitri. And not just any Pawn, but thanks to my Sacred Gear, I am worth 4 pawns at the same time! This makes me on a bigger level than the other Evil Pieces besides Vice-president Shinra and upperclassman Yura! Impressive, don't you think?"

"Oh-hoh, is that so?" I said to him faking interest. Oh so he's one of those people who like to boast about themselves with no problem in letting their tongues run free. And what is that? Apparently, Vice-president Shinra is also a devil, good to know. "And what are those Evil Pieces you speak of? You must be proud to worth so much, I want to know why."

"Indeed I am! Four Pawns is a big deal in the Evil Pieces! You see, devil society has been declining a lot since the last war, so one of the Demon Lords Ajuka Beelzebub created a special magical object known as evil Pieces to turn humans into devils based on chess! I am worth 4 pawns! It might be the weakest pieces, but four of them are already stronger than a single Bishop or Knight!" Oh-hoh, so this is how it works now, Devils turning other species into devils to repopulate their declining society, that's very very interesting, if not a bit unhinged from a human standpoint, but what do I know? I pick another piece of meat for myself and continue to listen to his boastful self. Easy, too easy, as expected from an idiot, and president Sona might be even a bigger idiot to recruit him. Idiots, all of them are idiots.

"Oh-wow, that's so cool, Saji. Truly, I wouldn't be able to fight you with such confidence. Maybe avoiding you all was the better choice after all." I continue to smile and stroke his ego as I slowly try to distance myself from his original goal, and truly I can sense that little by little I'm trying to convince him that I am not a threat. The lower I fly under their radar, the better. Maybe that's why President Sona made him her pawn, he's good for a quick laugh at. Which reminds me: "But do tell me, why you would join President Sona, if you such potential with your Sacred Gear? Besides being harassed by other factions because of it, something I can assume you would have no problem with?"

"It's because… President Sona has the same dream as me." And suddenly I saw his expression sour from a boastful to a quite contained one, as the flame in his eyes wilted away, and he adopted a more melancholic stance. Oh right, he did mention about some peace conference between the three factions and how that would help him achieve his and president's dream or something. "You see, despite all the progress the previous generation of devils have done, High-class devils still look down on Low-class devils, treating us like we're trash and looking down on us. They don't even allow low-class devil children to frequent Rating Game schools."

"Okay." I have no idea what a Rating Game School is supposed to be, but suddenly that same flame of devotion starts to burn up again inside of his body.

"However, Unlike those uppity high-class, however, President Sona is altruistic and kind, and if this whole conference goes well, she can prove herself to the higher-ups of the Underworld and build a Rating Game school for all the classes of devils, making her dream come true! And when that happens, I'll be a teacher there as well!"

"Uh-huh. Okay then." So president Sona might be an idiot, but she's also quite altruistic and benevolent, and she's actually trying to make a difference in her own world, the Underworld. She's nice, too nice. What she's trying to do is kinda nice… But too naïve. Oh, well. "If that's the case, then I don't even have the reason to ruin or interrupt anyway. It's not like I have the power or reason to, anyway. So good luck, you'll really need it."

"What… What is that supposed to mean?" His scowl returns back at me, and for that I stare back at him with a certain level of indifference. I don't actually mind or care about President's dreams and whatevers, I think it's great that she's trying to do something that benevolent and selfless for her apparently divided caste system. But then again, she's too good for that… Saji slaps the table we're on, as I can see that his rage has returned. "I asked you a question, Kurokami: What do you mean by that! Are you making fun of president's dreams?!"

"No, no, no. None of that, none of that. I'm glad that president Sona is more altruistic and selfless than I could've ever imagined, she indeed has my respect, support and encouragement even if she never finds out about it. Yeah, no, I have no problem with her." I said with both my hands lifted against him in a sign of non-aggression, which wasn't enough to convince him since he starts to pant against me. "I mean, can a low-class devil be promoted to a high-class devil?"

"Of course it can! But it requires years or even decades of work for that to happen!" He says to me, and I only sigh for that. President Sona loses a few points from me, but I still see her in high regard.

"So go for it, if she wants to build a school which demerits other devils who climbed to the top of the food chain and earned their own high-class positions and give others a free pass instead of working for that goal, she has all the support I can give." I said to him, and suddenly his eyes get bloodshot. Ah, I think I spoke too loudly my own thoughts. I mean, if the Underworld works the same way as the human world, then someone of a lower-class can eventually conquest their place among the higher ups, and those born as high-class, if they're stupid enough, will be their own downfall. Like I said, this is how society works, this is how the world works. Even I, born in a good house, with a good family and role model and going to a prestigious school, am nothing without my own efforts, and in order to maintain that life, I have to keep climbing. Saji loses and picks me by the collar to make us come closer to each other. "Are you mad? Sorry if I said something insensitive or whatever, but I do want you to know: like that saying goes, the pathway to hell is filled with good intentions, and President Sona's dreams will only prove that those low-class devils can't help themselves from their own situation and need a hand from someone like her. I do respect her dream and all, but it has its **flaws** and will make low-classes being even more underestimated. You can't ignore that at all, Saji."

"Shut up! You don't know that! You don't know about anything at all!" He screams at me and I can smell the scent of barbecue coming from his mouth. People are starting to look again, making me regret everything that I've said so far. I turn back at him after a small turn in order to avoid his dead breath, and while he remains with that same arrowed stare, I can see that he's faltering a bit. I pick up his pulse that he would let go off of me. "You… You don't know about that… I know there is a risk, but this is her dream… And also mine…"

"I know, I Know. **Sorry** for that, that was rude of me. Just keep it down; you're attracting too much attention." I waved the tension away with a sour face trying to get rid of the uneasy feeling around and the stares from the staff and other costumers. A waiter even came to ask if everything was okay and I had to respond for him so we wouldn't get kicked out. Geez, dealing with idiots is so problematic, especially those passionate ones since they tend to explode for no reason. I sigh, taking a sip out of my orange juice to look back at him. "Oh well, since you know the risks, then I guess it's okay to dream. I can't say so myself, I have no ambitions of my own besides the usual, and even if I do tell people I am Azazel's son, they would only think I'm crazy at best. I guess being the son of a fallen angel doesn't give me any heads up in life as well, or at least any that I'm aware of…"

"Skip the crap already, Kurokami. What do you want?" And that was his only response as I take another bite out of the ribs and he lifts his head to face me, again with that stare that mixes hesitation, fear and determination. He hasn't eaten yet and he wants to end this whole date, what a joykiller. But oh well, it is my fault for inviting here in the first place. But at least I got to eat some barbecue, so no reason to hold him any longer.

"Oh, right. You're here because I convinced you to, right? I almost forgot, the meat here is so delicious it makes my head drift away. You should try it a bit, maybe that will cure that scowl of yours." I simply say and he starts to grunt again. No much for jokes, right? I wouldn't either if I were in his position. I took a bite out of another piece of ribs and turned back to him. "But I do have important information you might like: You must've heard about the small crisis that happened in Kuoh the other day, right? Vice-president Shinra probably told you guys of President's group about it, right? The attack that put everyone to sleep? The one I said I was asleep the whole time?"

"Yeah, she did. It happened during her chores as vice-president, and she said that there was an attempt to kill all the students with… Chloramine gas? Something like that." He says, staring at his own navel. I snap him out.

"Not all the students, just two, the others were just bonuses for the twisted mind of a serial killer. Two of those students, as you can guess, is President Sona." I said with a shrug as he suddenly shoots his stares back at me. He's taking the bait as always, as dangerous as he may be, he's still clueless about this whole ordeal. However, of course I will play with that. "I can tell you what happened, but you have to promise me that you tell president Sona I'm clean and completely normal. I'm just a normal student, with a normal lineage and in no way related to Azazel and stuff, okay? This is all that I ask."

"Tch." He chimes at me. "And what makes you think I will believe anything you will say?"

"The same reason as to why I believe that you keep our promise and be quiet about me: because you are a good and fair person, who wouldn't lie about keeping a deal. Besides, I think president would like that kind of information." I chime back with a finger lifted. Truth to be told, I'm playing quite the gambit here, relying solely on his idiocy and loyalty to president so I can get myself free from this situation. I can't rely on Tama to turn the tables on my end, so I'll have to convince him that I'm telling the truth. He's the one babbling about this and that about devils, evil pieces and whatnot, so I have to play his game and be also honest since this is how things work. "Besides, I might be Azazel's son, but I'm just half-fallen angel, so you can trust me with all of your heart. And believe me, being member of the student council, I'm sure you want to protect the surroundings and the students and whoever frequents Kuoh academy, right?"

"…" He looks down, looks up, looks back at me, shows me some pearly whites in a grunt, and then sighs, frowning like ever before. "Fine, I won't tell anything to prez about you or your relation with the fallen angels… For now."

"Ever."

"…"

" _Please_."

"Ever."

"Nice, nice. It's not so hard, is it?" I said with a mocking clap and another bite out of the meat on it. Now, to cover the part of the deal. "Now for my part… Saji, have you heard about this Kokabiel man?"

"Kokabiel…" He mutters to himself, and then his eyes turn cold. "I know this name… I remember it, President Sona told me he's one of the Cadres and leaders of the Fallen angel faction alongside the likes of Shemhazai, Baraqiel and… Azazel. He's also always on bad terms with his cohorts and many peace attempts were foiled because of his warmonger ways. It's because of him it's so hard for the conference to take place… Wait, are you telling me…!"

"That he's the reason behind the sudden attack on Kuoh academy the other day? For what I know, yes." I said picking my wallet yet again to pass around a small credit card with a name written on it. "Or at least, one of his minions tried something against Kuoh trying to kill President Sona and another devil princess there. Have you heard about the serial killer Tyrion Lannister's latest escape prison and his sudden appearance on the news? I fought him and stuff, he had a lame Sacred Gear that was actually a symbolism for his hatred against those who look down on his due to his erroneously-nicknamed deformation, and once defeated, he told me who sent him to kill the two: A fallen angel named Kokabiel."

"You fought… That serial killer? The one who attacked Kuoh?" He questioned me, and I just shrugged with a prideful puff out of my system.

"Not as much as 'fight' him, I just outsmarted him to a corner and played my cards right. I'm pretty good with those, after all." I boasted for no reason at all, my eyes completely shining with pride and smug, but soon I returned to my usual stare. "But that aside, after I defeated him, I forced him to tell me all of his secrets and the reason he target Kuoh of all places. Turns out, the one who made a pact with him to kill the two devil princesses in Kuoh was… Kokabiel. You also said he is kind of a warmonger, so it makes perfect sense."

"I see. As much as I can't say if it's truth or not…" He turns back at me. "But still, this story sounds so fishy, you of all people, defeating someone like a serial killer… It's hard to believe."

"I knew that you would say that." I say finally passing the credit cards that I have discarded from my wallet, making him look at the names on it plus a driving's license and ID card. He bewilders his eyes seeing all in those. "Well, no problem on my end. I also took some of his cards and some money from his wallet as trophies, so take a closer look as much as you like."

"You… You _stole_ from a serial killer?"

"…"

"…"

"Like I said, I took his cards and his money as trophies since he lost to me. So as you can see, all I've told you so far is true, and those are irrefutable proofs." I said trying to diverge from the fact that he's not completely wrong, but not completely right either. I mean, I earned those trophies, and Mr. Lannister even agreed on those as my conditions. I wasn't extortion or anything like that, it was a penalty at worst, just that. It apparently worked as such, as he turns back at me, deep in thoughts. "So, will you let me go? I told you everything I know, and even if it's blurry or vague, I can say that for sure: fallen angels are on the watch doing something fishy among themselves. I wouldn't be so sure in trusting them either, as the son of one of them speaking."

"Tch, this is too much proof, and even if this is just coincidences clashing, to not take at look at those is…" He starts to sweat a lot, thinking to himself as I enjoy the lasts bits of meat around the grills. Be fallen angels, be devils, be angels, I don't actually care about the whole affairs around those three factions and their little war, I am human above all else so they can go ahead and make peace to each other and have tea around, I don't mind much really. In the end, he takes a minute to sigh, and to look back at me, this time with serener eyes. He doesn't have to say anything, I know what happens next.

"Alright. Begrudgingly, as a member of Sona Sitri's peerage and a servant of the house of Sitri, I promised, so I shall fulfill it by not revealing your identity for any of my fellow servants or master, and in return, you gave me important information about a terrorist attack towards our school. I'll let you go." He sighs again, but then moves forward to headbutt me on the forehead, his scowl back on his face. "But don't forget, I will have my eyes on you, Kurokami. Also, you might've escaped from President's radar, but I'll make you my enemy, and I'll never, ever, forgive you for making fun of president's dreams! Are we clear?"

"Crystal." I said back, no change from my end but a sardonic smile. Again, he might think otherwise, but this battle was completely one-sided on my end. I got what I want and got to know a lot more about the supernatural world from his loose mouth, what an idiot! Him and President deserve each other. We parted contact with just a bruised forehead, and he sat back on his seat, now picking his stuff and the cards I've offered him. "Hey Saji, where are you going? Aren't you going to eat this course with me? I don't think I can finish it myself. This is a date, after all."

"I had enough with you, Kurokami. I already got what you offered, so I have no reason to stay here any longer. Enjoy this course yourself, I'm going home." He declares without even looking back at me, standing up from his seat to walk right beside me to face me yet again. "But don't forget: as far as I know, you're still a threat and an enemy. I won't tell president about you, but the moment you get out of line, all bets are off, and I'll b-…!"

"You're a good person and a nice pawn, whatever that means. He's a little reward for you." But before he could embarrass us even more, I handed him a 10,000 yen bill onto his face, making him take a step back in surprise and blink a few times. I didn't even bother to look back at him since I have a real full-course of meat to eat. He gasps. "I know this is not part of our deal and all, but a little extra money so you keep that mouth of yours shut. I seriously have nothing against you or your master nor am I planning anything, so take those cards, take that 10,000 yen bill and don't bother me anymore, please."

"…" A moment of silence.

"Or perhaps you want a kiss on the lips for that? I don't mind." I teased/mocked him, and his only response was again a grunt and a snap of his fingers on mine, snatching that piece of precious paper from them. Another scowl, another grunt, and I half-expected him to say something, but like a fish, he opened then closed his mouth, grunted again and walked away from the restaurant. Again, not only he's an idiot, but this time, also a loser. "Heheh, Lucky~⋆."

So, from what I could gather, the president of the Student Council Sona Shitori, or Sona Sitri, is one of the devil princesses this Kokabiel man is after, and apparently she has this magical system that can turn humans into devils, which explains how a devil like Saji has a Sacred Gear even though Mr. Ikuse has said otherwise. Also, apparently there are signs of fallen angels roaming around Kuoh town and also targeting president and the other devil princess, and for that, I just have to be sharp and avoid being found or get caught in the crossfire. Oh well, from what I could gather from Saji, there is something I don't have to worry about, since apparently every devil and fallen angel out here is an idiot, so as long as I can play my cards right, I should be fine. I am Kokuto Kurokami, the man who has luck by his side, after all.

Huhuhuhuh, I don't know why, I played a big gambit today, and almost got the cat out of the box regarding my identity, but somehow, this only makes me more excited for the things that have to come. Be devils, fallen angels, angels or whatever, I shall defeat them all and regain my life back, since I am the man who has both luck and life by his hand. Huhuhuhuh…

Huhuhuh…

…

…

Damn it, I forgot.

I was supposed to use that 10,000 yen to pay the bill…

* * *

Damn it, I was so caught in the moment with Saji I completely forgot that he didn't pay his side of the meal, and I gave him the only money I had with me this whole time. The manager of the restaurant was so enraged that he forced me out of the restaurant with frying pans and everything I got from there was 1-month banishment and a very large bump on the head. I think I've ran out of luck for that moment, I couldn't even pack the remains of the meal…

Oh well, it wasn't anything big so I guess I am on the green side again. I was taking my way home, now a little bit more alert since apparently the world is infested with those supernatural beings I can't tell apart from, when I bumped into very infamous someone, who had a very lewd yet happy expression on his face and was carrying a small bouquet of roses. We bumped into each other…

"Oh Hyoudou, hey. Are your wounds all healed-up?" I waved at him out of his daze and at first he scowled at me, but then opened a defiant grin. Something good definitely happened to him. "What's with the shit-eating grin? Did something good happen? Maybe you won the award for the biggest pervert in the World?"

"As if, Kurokami. Today has been a good day for me, so nothing you say will bring me down." He says with smug dripping from his words, and for that I chirpily grin back at him with a shrug. Still doesn't take the possibility of the pervert award. He comes closer and taps me a few times with the back of his hand. "Not only I got a Secret admirer back in Kuoh, get this, now I am on the same level as a pretty boy like you! Guess what, I got a girlfriend now! How about that?!"

"That's nice. Congratulations." I clapped at him. I mean, I don't buy that in the slightest, but if he's happy, then there's no reason for me to ruin his fun. But really, there is something fishy going on in Kuoh: First a terrorist attack, not that. It must be an omen of the world ending. He turns back at me with a surprised face.

"Eh? Aren't you going to make fun of me? Or say something rude and unnecessary to ruin my day?" He questions me, and I shrug again. Poor guy probably has parents just like my mom, those friends of him probably don't help either.

"If you're happy about something, who am I to ruin your fun, Hyoudou? Also, having a girlfriend is that not big of a deal, really." I said back, but then he jumps at me with bulging, tearing eyes and teeth showing in a clear display of anger.

" **THIS IS EXACTLY WHY I HATE DARK, HANDSOME AND SMART PLAYBOYS LIKE YOU, KUROKAMI! ALL YOU SAY ABOUT GIRLS AND HOW EASY THEY FALL ON YOUR LAP PISSES ME OFF! TAKE A MOMENT TO LOOK FROM MY END AND YOU WILL SEE WHY HAVING A GIRLFRIEND IS A DREAM COME TRUE**!" He bursts on me with tears of salt and blood, and all I can do I turn my face elsewhere and block is advances with my palm on his face. Gross Hyoudou, don't do that, it's embarrassing.

"Well, sorry for being born dark, handsome and smart, Hyoudou. It's not you who has to deal with everyone hating you from the get-go." I sigh, still holding his face until he calmed down, still looking me with fire in his eyes and breathing heavily. Come to think of it, while I had my hand on his face, I sensed something quite bizarre about him: He has some sort of aura that differs him from others. I wonder what it is. Whatever, none of my business for now. "But good for you, Hyoudou. I guess having a girlfriend is the highest point our youth can reach. Just… Don't let her know about your perverseness, you're one of those people whose worst enemy are themselves."

"Of course not! I will plan the best date she could ever imagine! I will make it the best date ever, and maybe… Just maybe… She'll let me touch her tits. Huhuhuh~, they were so big, I bet they're soft as well~." And he couldn't even finish his sentence before shifting back to his perverted self, making me roll my eyes. I chopped the back of his head in order to wake up from his daze, and after shaking his head, he turns back at me. "I'll make the best date ever. Yuuma's my first girlfriend, so I can't afford to lose her. You'll see, Kurokami! I'll be the best boyfriend you could ever dream to be!"

"Okay then. More force to you." I clap again at him, and his only response was another grunt.

"Does nothing faze that face of yours? You say a lot, but yourself is pretty cold-faced most of the time. What gives, Kurokami?" He questions with a finger pointing at me, and for that I shrug. Ah, I have no reason to have strong emotions, and really, no drive to do anything besides the bare minimum. Even when my life has some secrets and revelations, I refuse to give in. Maybe I inherited that from Azazel, or maybe it's something of my own. Don't know, don't care.

"I have no reason to have strong emotions, Hyoudou. I'm just one of those manga characters who are mysterious and quiet for the sake of it. Even I am discovering things that I didn't know until now about myself, and really, after discovering that you have a girlfriend now, I can only see that as the herald of big, disastrous things to come." I make a pose, hand on my face and slightly curved hips in order to look mystrious and sexy as possible. Hyoudou, on the other hand, only let out a nervous laugh and took a few steps back.

"I have no idea if you're being delusional or just messing with me, but you're making me nervous, Kurokami." He declares, but then his lewd smile returns at full force, returning his way home but not before waving me a last goodbye. "Sorry, but I have to go now. First, I need to know how sent me those roses, and if nothing comes out… I need to plan the best date ever, for both ends~. Heheh… Heheheheh… See ya at school…"

"Okay, see ya." I wave him one last goodbye, not even bothering to show my disgust over the lewd face he has. So that's new, Hyoudou has a girlfriend, and by his face I assume it's not either a Dutch wife or his own right hand. Speaking of it, why do I feel this uneasy feeling next to him? I just touched his ugly face but yet I could sense from him quite a dangerous aura. Wonder why? Maybe he is another supernatural creature and he doesn't know best. An incubus, perhaps? I wouldn't be surprised. Before I could say anything to him, he disappeared from my sight. Ah, things are getting so complicated…

A strong wind blows in my direction, and from the sky, I see some black feathers fall right in front of me. Too big to be from any kind of bird, not to mention it has also quite an ominous design and aura. This feeling of dread again, what is going on? First I discover about my own true heritage, and then the student council might be filled with devils and the president herself is a devil heiress, and now, Hyoudou has a girlfriend. I have the feeling this is the start of a series of events that can only bring destruction… And no matter what, I have to keep myself away from that. I sigh, maybe I'm thinking too much, but those signs can only mean something bad is gonna happen…

And for some reason… I grow a bit excited about it. Huhuh, I wonder what will happen from now on…

…

The next day, I discovered that two members of the Perverted Trio entered the women's changing room asking for their secret admirer to show herself. They were beaten to a bloody pulp not much after…

No one was surprised.


	8. Under the pale moonlight, part 1

**Hello there, another chapter fresh from the oven. This one at least didn't had to wait an entire year-roll to happen. But oh well, it's better than nothing. This chapter, our hero comes closer to one of his heroines(which I assume you already know) and again is wrapped in a messy situation. Ecchi might occur? Maybe.**

 **Thanks for your interest in this story, and if you have any suggestions, ideas or criticisms, remember to R &R below. And before I forget: DxD belongs to Ichiei Ishibumi and it's respective magazines. This is only a fanwork. Have nice read!**

* * *

 _'Surprise, surprise! Kurokami is asleep again...'_

 _'Is everything he ever does in class, sleeping during lectures, all alone. It's a bit gross, too, even for a transferred guy...'_

 _'It's a shame, too. He certainly is cute.'_

 _'Ew~, don't say that. He might hear you and want to talk to you...'_

 _'Creepy~...'_

Ah, shut up~. It's not like I don't want to have friends, being the transferred guy around is hard, you know. Besides, if you guys have time to talk like that behind my back, then come here and talk to me, damnit.

I can't believe it has been almost a month since I transferred here in Kuoh Academy, yet I have no friends to speak to, nor any professors seems to like me all that much, and my popularity as the 'new guy' vanished in the blink of an eye, and I end up just as the freaky boy who sleeps during classes. Not that I care much for that, but being talk about in whispers piss me off a bit, specially by girls. Ugh...

But no matter, no matter. The lesser they know about me, the better. I already have my fair share of problems to deal with, things they wouldn't even consider in their normal lives. I just need to play this persona until I finish high school, and then I'll deal with them without the system holding me back. But come to think of it, this school, this particular school, I notice it has a very distinctive scent roaming around. Something like... Scorch, or maybe something burning. I wonder why, though…

But whatever, it's not my problem, it won't be my problem. She said to hang low as for now and only act in case of danger, so this is what I'm doing. I'm kinda tired anyway, so I won't bother as for now. Just gonna hang low, take a nap, look at the passing time and hear the mean whispers coming from my classmates. This is my life now, and I couldn't ask for anything differen-...

 ***BAM!***

"Gh...!"

"Good afternoon, Kokkun." And I spoke too soon. When I was about to take my daily nap on the lap of my seat, there she comes again, storming inside my classroom and pulling a chair for herself to sit in front of me, the sound of her lunchbox hitting right next to me. Ugh, not her, not now, not again. Without even taking my cheek off the chair, I toss my stare upwards, and there she is: Long and smooth black hair, equally dark eyes and a ghastly pale skin that it looks like it shines. It looks like an angel, but it is just my 'girlfriend' Shirayuki Shirogane, who couldn't be further from an angel but a devil itself. Just my luck, is it lunchtime already? She sits in front of me, unwrapping her lunchbox. "I see that you have been sleeping during classes yet again. How shameful, to think my boyfriend would behave so rebelliously, it's almost laughable, I must say. But of course, I wouldn't laugh at you."

"Hahahah~, so I'll laugh for you, Yuki." I retorted while returning to face my desk as she takes the first bite out of her fried shrimp. What a week, my brain is practically mush now, and all things considered I just can't stop looking over my shoulder thinking that someone, anyone, might be a supernatural being and attack me out of nowhere. Fortunately, even if things get out of control that fast, I still have Yuki to pull me back into reality and remind me that, even after all of this, I'm still me, and that's what matters the most. I feel a hand touch the back of my head.

"Laugh as much as you want, Kokkun. If I could, I would laugh at you until I practically would vomit my own lungs." She murmurs still caressing my nape in a very wholesome way. Ah~, this feel nice and warm, I don't even care the others are practically carving a hole on the back of my skull with their stares, it is nice to be spoiled from time to time. But this has to stop some time, so I waved her hand away from me and stood sit on my desk, as she pouts. "How bold of you, discarding my spoiling out of nowhere. Some people would kill and die to have an opportunity to be spoiled by yours truly. You're a strange one, Kokkun."

"Say something I don't know." I retort, keeping it to myself that between us, she's the stranger one. But whatever, she's cute and has nice tits, so I can withstand that side of hers, no problem. I yawned a little and picked my own lunchbox of curry rice and salad, beginning to eat together with her. I wonder if this is how people my age eat together? Somehow, this is both boring and soothing if this makes any sense. There was no words between us though, so I grew bored quickly. "So, about our date during Golden Week, have you got the preparations ready? This is the first time I ever take a trip to Hokkaido outside vacations, wonder if we'll be able to eat crabs."

"Don't worry, I got everything planned and we'll be able to eat as much crustaceans and mollusks to our hearts' content. Maybe we can find a nice souvenir, even." She declares clapping her hands together and turning her eyes to me, and while I was about to smile back, she shots a frown at me. "But unfortunately we won't be able to ride my driver there, so I'll politely ask you to be one during our stay there. Since I know you don't have a driver's license, I'll request a bicycle there for us to move around."

"And how do you know I can ride a bike?"

"…"

"I can, I'm just saying you're being a little inconsiderate regarding me." I declare with a defeated shrug and a puff of smoke out of my mouth in dissatisfaction, but I'm not at all surprised by her words, I know the kind of fake!girlfriend that I have. And I guess I can serve as her ride, I don't really mind that, and riding a bicycle with my fake!girlfriend around Hokkaido is very romantic in a way, every romanticist's fantasy especially on an age such as mine. Sounds also like a lot of work, but eh, I can handle it. "That sounds nice on paper, a bicycle ride on a date with my girlfriend… We might not be dating the usual way, but having those fantasies sure are nice for a change."

"What are you talking about, Kokkun?" She asks me with a piece of fried shrimp on her mouth, taking her sweet time to bite it, munch it, swallow it and finally look back at me, blinking once, twice, before attacking another piece of meat. I took a deep breath but couldn't finish it since she aimed her chopsticks at my throat now. "I am your girlfriend above all else, so it's not uncommon for you to have fantasies with me. Although I would rather avoid knowing that you fantasize about me during such time of the day. It's really disgusting…"

"I wasn't. Not really. I was just saying that a date with you sounds nice in my head, nothing lewd. You're the one who probably have a dirty mind, Yuki." I retort back, and her frown grows even furrower, making her come closer to me and pinch one of my cheeks, while I could only grunt in unison with her. I don't know why, but aside from that photo, I can also sense some solace coming from my interactions from her. I don't dislike it. In the end, she let go of me, finally letting me massage the affected area. "Okay, sorry. My bad, Yuki. I'll mind my own words next time."

"You better, Kokkun. Reckless words will only take you to a shallow grave, and who knows, maybe I'll be the one who will dig it." So ominous. She speaks with weightless words and sentences, but I can't help but to grow a bit frightened by her, and I can only assume she's not a serial murderer or a devil all things considered. She goes ahead and shoves a piece of meat inside my mouth, so I can only munch on it. "Words carry weight and impact, so you better watch your mouth and match their pounds, otherwise you will scare people away, and not even your girlfriend(that is me, by the way) will want to stay close to you. Isn't that you the one who wants to be popular?"

"Not really, but it must be nice, being popular like you." I sighed, and her only response was a pat in the head. Little does she know that the reason I have no one close to me it's mainly because of her. Mainly, but not totally, I might add. I really need a reality check and find some friends for myself, despite the fact that most of the students here in Kuoh are idiots. "But if nothing works, I can always count of you to be by my side, right Yuki?"

"…"

"…"

"…"

"I'm just kidding, of course. You can dump me whenever you want, I won't blame you."

"You do have your way with words, but don't think I will always stay by your side by the most times. I might even abandon you, if that ever happens." She tilts her head to a side, and shots me a sardonic, empty smile. For the most I thought she was just messing with me yet again but then I noticed something new: She was blushing a little. "But as for now, I'll always by your side even by the worst of times. Even if I wouldn't ever date someone like you, being your (fake!)girlfriend is not so bad after all."

"Hahahah… Thanks, Yuki."

"Anytime, Kokkun." And the bell rings once more, announcing the end of lunchtime, and also the end of our little reunion. She packs her stuff up, puts the chair she picked back to it's place and adjusted her hair a little, taking her time also to comb my own a bit, toying with the little sword-shaped hairclip on it. It's a pain to redo the whole work and put that embarrassing hairclip on, but eh, I think it's kinda neat. Plus, a sign of affection, so I won't discard it. "I see that you're keeping the hairclip. That's cute, and you're kinda cute with it too. Glad to see that you can see how I can totally improve your look like that."

"What can I say? The only person who has a better sense of fashion than you is my mom." I shrugged, and she let out a puff of a laughter between her teeth. Is she mocking me or I genuinely make her laugh? Questions, so many questions. In the end, she tapped me a few times on the shoulder and shined a pretty smile.

"Keep up with the good intentions, Kokkun. That's how a boyfriend of a girl such as myself should be." She says. "Also, since you have not finished your choirs this week, I guess I'll be going home alone today as well, eh? Well then, goodbye for today."

"Yeah, yeah. See ya tomorrow, Yuki." I waved as she walked away from my classroom, leaving me alone yet again in this nest of murmuring people and acidic words. I don't care much for those, and I'm even glad they have the decency to speak ill of me just after Yuki leaves, I'll give them that. Even so, it's harder for me to get to know people and make friends too… I wonder if there's anyone here who likes to play Pachinko and is old-looking enough to get me a pass in the nearby parlor…

*KICK!*

"Yeow!" And before I could even wrap my own lunchbox, someone just kicked one of the legs of my chair and made me fall onto the ground onto my ass. I turned around to see if I could find the culprit, but all that I got was a small crowd of people looking back at me with total despise and contempt, the guys eyeing me with hatred and jealousy, and the girls, with disgust and annoyance. All of them seemed to glow in the increasing darkness of this classroom.

 _'Just die, Kurokami.'_

 _'He must really think he's hot shit dating someone like Shirogane. What a good-for-nothing asshat.'_

 _'I bet he's blackmailing her to do his biddings or something. He does give that manipulator, disgusting aura.'_

 _'He's doing afternoon chores today. We'll catch him there.'_

I sigh, again with that. Those people really have to find something better to do than to pester me. But again, without that, there's no point in having a girlfriend as pretty and popular as Yuki to shove down on their faces. Although, if I can have a romantic scenario such as having crab lunch in Hokkaido with her after a bike ride, I guess there's no problem in that either. I picked myself up, dusted my clothes a little, lifted my chair again and sat on my seat for classes to start.

Maybe my stay in Kuoh won't be as boring as I thought it would…

* * *

"Hey, Kurokami…"

"Yeah…?"

 ***KICK!***

"You missed another spot. Geez, what a useless guy…" And I could only see the trash can roll in my direction, spreading dirt and dust all over the place as my upperclassmen walk away laughing with each other and spitting on the floor I just finished dusting.

Another day, another end of class periods and the start of chores period, and being the new student, I gotta compensate by cleaning the school and doing other chores until the clock ticks. I mean, I would be doing other stuff, but every once in a while those jackass upperclassmen just show up to mess with me and leave own trash in my classroom for me to clean up. Oh well, I have nothing better to do and no one is waiting me home, so I guess there's no problem in staying here just a little bit. Having some time for myself also helps me think about my new school and about my stay here…

I just discovered because of that idiot Saji that the entire Student Council of Kuoh academy is composed of devils, if not the majority of them at least, with Sona Shitori, or should I say Sona Sitri, being the leader of them, a devil princess, and one of the two targets of Kokabiel, the fallen angel, and I assume maybe my father and the entirety of the fallen angel race. Which reminds me that, if I ever want a quiet and peaceful high school life, I must stay as far away as possible from her or the student council since I don't want to be discovered or die in the crossfire. Those supernatural beings can fight as much as they want, just don't involve me into this… Which reminds me, this also means I won't be joining the student council because not only that would be a lot of work, I would be completely exposing myself from harm, and for starters I'm not that great of a student, so people would both start to hate me even more and get suspicious. Maybe I can join the track team, those are always fun and I can practice so I have more rhythm and stamina to run away from my problems…

Hahah, I just made a joke. If I had any friends around, they would be rolling on the floor laughing. _LOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOL_ …

…

Maybe I can make some friends too while at it. I don't care if I become an idiot too, having some company would be nice aside from Yuki and my bullies…

"Kurokami…?"

"Heh?" And I snap back from my little reverie to notice that I am again all alone dusting the classroom. Well, not completely alone now, since I notice that the one who called for me was right behind me: The vice-president of the student council and the fourth prettiest girl of all Kuoh academy, Tsubaki Shinra. I turned around to face her, and politely bowed to her. Oh, hello there, Vice-president Shinra. I didn't see you there."

"Uh… Good afternoon for you too." She says, and I can see for some reason red tints tainting her pale face. She adjusts her glasses and looks back at me. "Kurokami, I couldn't help but notice that… You usually takes a greater amount of time dusting this particular classroom. It's not that big of a class, and sometimes I see that you clean this place only to appear dirty the next moment."

"Oh, that? Don't mind me, vice-president…"

" _Tsubaki_ is fine."

"Okay… _Vice-president Shinra_. As I was saying, don't mind me. I'm just a bit slower than the other people. This is the first time I've cleaned a classroom before, anyway." I shrugged her comment off, and she takes a deep breath while retaking her look at me, adjusting her glasses once more. Her freaky monochromatic eyes are staring at me, this is so creepy. "Don't go wasting your time on me, you probably has student council things to do, right? You should worry about those instead of lil'old me."

"Kurokami, you might try, but I can't ignore the fact that some upperclassmen have been harassing you." She says with a stern voice, I am flinch hearing that. Man, busted I guess! I tilt my head to a side, and sigh, supporting myself on the tip of my broom and lowering my head, as if a weight of a ton just fell on me. "Just tell me who they are, and what they have been doing to you and I… I mean, me and the student council will take the appropriate matters for your safety. You can trust me…"

"I really appreciate your help, vice-president, but you must be exaggerating." I got to play my cards right now, so I lift my head to face her and smile, the best smile I could muster, not one of arrogance or superiority, but a warm one. I think it worked since she blushes once again. "Those are just playful pranks. Freshman pranks. They are just upperclassman doing what they should to the new guy, aka me. Don't you worry about me, I am fine. They just prank me a lot, put dead animals on my shoe lockers and kick me around, nothing I can't deal with."

"If… If you're so sure." She sighs more one time as a sign of defeat, and for that I can only bump my own arm a bit, feeling the sweet sense of victory over myself. Guess I am just that hard to make friends with, or is just the imp by the back of my head to not associate myself with her, because she is the vice-president of the student council and therefore close, maybe a bit too close, to president devil princess Sona. She looks at me one more time before taking her way to the exit. "Kurokami, I know you're not a bad person, and seeing someone as underserving as you suffering like that not only taints Kuoh's reputation but also… Saddens me. Verily. You should look out for people who also look out for you…"

"…" I turn to her. "Vice-president Shinra…"

"…?"

"Are you… Are you hitting on me?" I say with a straight face, and I could see that from pale, her entire face was engulfed in flames and blush. Even I thought she overreacted a little, but I can't help it to find it kinda cute, mainly because of the gap moe between now and the usually stoic vice-president of the student council. She turns around to hide her blush away.

"N-N-No, Kurokami! Of course I am not! I am just… Warning! Yes, I was just warning you that the student council will always have time and efforts to help you in any case! Personal or not! I… I was not flirting with you!"

"Good, because I would've told you to stop." I said it bluntly, and for that, the sudden blush on her face disappeared, and her face instead contorted into something akin to a surprised face. "I already have a girlfriend, and whatever I like her or not, that's not important. However, I would have told you to stop because I already have Yuki, and all things considered, I have no intentions in dating another girl. One is already enough for me."

"…" No response from her.

"Also, if you want to help me so much, I would ask you to… Please, stop talking to me." Now I turn back into dusting the classroom, without even looking at her because for me, this conversation is dead and buried. She's dangerous and persistent, so I'm done being polite and slow, time for some bluntness. "I can live with the harassment as for now, no problem, but if they know I'm talking to you and you're all trying to protect me, trust me, this will only make things worse and I am not sure if I can keep up like that. So please, Vice-president of the Student council Tsubaki Shinra, for the sake of my own safety you insist of messing with, leave me alone, don't talk to me, and don't even come close to me anymore. Maybe then I can live another day instead of your fans also messing with me."

"…"

No words, no sound, only silence. I am done with her and the student council, really. I don't know if they really want to help or have second intentions, but I really don't want any involvement with them or the devils, same with Mr. Ikuse and this Grigori. I just want a normal, quiet life without any conflicts, and whatever I am the son of a fallen angel, a Sacred Gear user or anything else, I will live my life as I want and no one will stop me. No one. In the end, she said nothing, but I could hear rapid footsteps on the cold floor, as she was running away, and when I turned around, I noticed that she wasn't even there anymore. She was gone, here no more, and so I could only sigh in relief since she finally left me alone. However, I could hear in the air, her last words to me…

 _'I thought you were different…'_

…

I wonder what I should do for dinner? After I'm done with that, maybe I should prepare myself with some ramen, not the cheap cup noodle even though mom bought that spicy Chinese one from one of her last trips. Maybe some somen and soba while I'm at it, so I can eat it with Yuki tomorrow. She always brings expensive food too, those are always good to eat with noodles…

 ***KICK!***

"Ah…" I snapped back from my little daydream to see a little trashcan rolled in my direction, spreading yet again dust and dirt all over the previously clean floor. I sigh and turned around to the door, where I saw the silhouette of one of my upperclassman next to where the trashcan was previously. For him, I scratched the back of my head and forced a smile. "Oh no~. It looks like I forgot another place in here, mr. Upperclassman. My bad, I'm being so clumsy these days. Don't worry, I'll clean it after I pick the trashcan…"

"…" However, Mr. upperclassman didn't laugh this time, he didn't make a joke about my face or threw a bucket at my head like last time. Instead, he so ominously started to walk to my direction, his shadow casting itself all over the classroom and then onto me, shadowing me from the dusking sun. I looked up to try to discern his face onto me, only now noticing how taller he is from me. Then we began to stare at each other. No response, no words, only him and me in the classroom. Okay, this is getting a little too unconfortable, what's with this sense of dread?

"Uuuhh~… Can I help you, Mr. Uppercl-…?"

" _Half-breed_ …"

"Wait, wh-…?"

 ***BITE!***

"…!" And before I could make sense of what he just said, mr. Upperclassman just went ahead and jet himself onto me, taking a deep, painful bite on the part between my neck and left shoulder! I wailed in pain as he carved his teeth into my flesh so much it started to draw blood and I could feel him trying to carve take a bite off me! He tossed himself on me and we both fell onto the ground with a loud *SLAM!*. Mr. Upperclassman is still trying to rip me apart with his teeth, and I can't help but to scream and struggle against him. "Gyaaah! Get off me! It hurts! What the hell are you doing?!"

"Filthy Half-breed! FILTHY HALF-BREED!" But no concrete answer from him, only those same mumblings from before as he tried again to take a nag out of me! Only now I notice something about him: Right on his face, on his forehead, I see a small piece of parchment glued to it, with some strange words written on it, like some kind of curse. I didn't pay much attention later, I dodged another bite from him, as saliva and bile would fall onto me! Gross! "FILTHY HALF-BREED! IT'S BECAUSE OF YOU SHE'S DEAD! NOW DIE!"

"I said GET OFF!" I couldn't help it. It goes against everything I know, but in a moment of desperation I kicked Mr. Upperclassman right in the middle of his legs with my free knee, and then his words and curses were turned into a grunt and whines of pain, as he now bends over to hold his damaged groin and rolled away from me, leaving me with enough room to jump up and stand up. Holy shit, I'm bleeding like crazy over here! I hold the area between my shoulder and neck in order to stop the bleeding, and then turned to Mr. Upperclassman who was still holding his precious smashed jewels, but even so trying to get up, his stare vacant and still drooling like a dog, the piece of paper still stuck on his forehead. "Ah, what the hell, man?! Are you trying to be Mr. Sagawa?! I have you know, at least he tried to get a degree before eating that girl!"

"Half-Breed… Half-breed…" He didn't seem to be listening to me, he still only mumbles those same irritating words like it's his only language or something. He starts to get up, but before he could do it, I kicked him in the shins again, and with another wimp, he gets down again, drool and bile running down his bloody mouth as I kicked him again and again every time he tried to stand up. I know this is wrong and stuff, but he's not himself now, and he attacked first, so I have all the rights to defend myself… Also, maybe the bullies are right, picking on others is damn cathartic. In the end, he had no forces or balls to even try to stand up, and so I dried all the sweat dripping from my own forehead, and sighed, hands on the hips to support myself.

"Ah, goddamn it. Sorry about that, mr. Upperclassman." I bowed to his nigh-unconscious self, a cold sweat dripping from my head as this is going to be a bitch to explain later. However, since he kept calling me 'half-breed', I can only assume that he, someone, knows about what I am. This is concerning, is he another idiot trying to pick up a fight like Saji? Or maybe it has something to do with that parchment attached to his head. I reached a hand for it and in a swift move, snapped away from his forehead to take a closer look. It looks like one of those paper seals you see exorcists using during rituals, but this one has a different written, almost dark and ominous. Like I know something about this, but good thing It can't be.

"Half-br-…!" And Mr. Upperclassman tried to reach for me again, but the moment I snapped that piece of parchment off his forehead, suddenly his unfocused cloudy eyes returned to normal, and then he no longer possessed that bloodthirsty rage from before. Instead, he just slammed himself on the floor again. I was kinda right, it has something to do with this paper seal.

"But what is it? Maybe I should get rid of it while I still can. I'll save me the trouble if this works just like in the movies." I said to myself, ripping that piece of paper in half and noticing a small mist coming from the rips. The paper then struggled a little on my grasp, but then died down and turned completely black. I guess this is the end of it. I tossed that paper away and then looked at the now-unconscious upperclassman lying in the middle of the floor. Would it be an asshole move to just leave him like that? Yes, yes it would, and no matter what I would feel bad about it. Better call for the emergency and have him treated, so I can rest at ease and maybe nobody will suspect of me. I walked towards the exit and opened the door to the corridor. "Excuse me! Someone passed out in the classroom! Can someone get the teacher or…?"

 ***CRUMP!***

"Hah…?" But before I could even finish my sentence, I felt myself stomping on something, thus making the rather annoying noise of crumpling paper. I looked down and then I noticed something quite sinister: The whole floor was covered in those same paper seals, all of them emitting a rather ominous aura of dread, and some of them were still getting blown out by the ventilation, flying around only to land on some of my classmates. A cold shiver ran down my spine. "This… This can't be good."

 _'Half-breed… Half-breed…'_

 _'Killer of Shuri… Killer of Shuri…'_

 _'Filthy mongrel… Filthy mongrel…!'_

And those words being moaned around made me turn around, only to stare back at the darkness of that dawning day, and from the pits of the abyss, I saw a bunch of vague, shiny red eyes looking at me, followed by steps, slow and steadily, reaching this way. Closer and closer, I saw a bunch of students, teachers and even some of the school staff walking towards me with those same vague eyes and mouth drooling saliva and bile, all of them looking very hungry, all of them with that same paper seal on their foreheads.

All of them… Marching towards me.

"Tama! With me!" I summoned my Sacred Gear and Tama landed right on my shoulder. Oh great, it looks like this will be another long day. Well, whatever! I can handle this! Because no matter what, **luck always side with Kokuto Kurokami**! "Okay then… Let's dance!"

 ***MEOW!***

"Filthy hybrid… Spawn of a fallen angel… _DIE_!"


	9. Under the pale moonlight, part 2

**Probably the fastest I've ever written a chapter all things considered, but here it is, the nwest chapter of the Hellhound fanfic, the Black God of misfortune. This chapter, Kokuto shall show that there's other side of the destiny that he has chosen, and honestly, I can feel the rush as I wrote the chapter. Anyway, here's the chapter, I hope you all enjoy it, and as always R &R and have a nice day!**

 **DxD does not belong to me, scenario, characters and terms are all owned by Ishibumi and its respective magazines.**

* * *

 _'Filthy half-breed! Filthy half-breed! Filthy half-breed!'_

"Eeeeeek…!" And I talked all mighty and big back there, but let's be honest here, no one under the same circumstances as me is confident/stupid enough to fight what is basically a controlled zombie apocalypse, so I did what I can do for now: I turned 180° and ran as fast as I could from the mind-controlled classmates and professors! I extended my pinky finger forward and summoned Tama yet again! "Tama! Go ahead and scan the area! Find a place where I can run to!"

And the little black cat made out of strings meowed back at me, taking the lead and jumping around to find the best way out of this tragicomic situation, all while I'm here avoiding the showering paper seals that wouldn't stop coming from the ventilation and doing my best to avoid getting eaten by my own bullies and educators! Tama turned to the direction of the stairs heading below, but agter a quick look, she instead jumped away and ran away forward. When I reached there as well, I saw a bunch of other students, all of them also with a paper seals on their foreheads, heading towards me! Thanks to Tama I could avoid getting eaten by my own underclassmen!

"But now what?! I can't go downstairs because I'll just be attacked again, and no matter how much I run, I'll eventually…" I spoke to myself, and truly, the moment I thought I could have more second to think, I was surprised by another crowd just waiting for me around the corner, crawling and moving at my direction and looking as mindless and hungry as the guys behind me! Shit! No way to go except away from here! "Tama! Find a classroom with no one! Find a classroom or any place where I can hide away from them!"

The cat lost no time pointing me an empty room right there on the corridor, and likewise, I lost not even a second on that: I jumped into the crowd, into the direction of said classroom and kicked the door open, soon slamming my own back into it and locking the door so the zombies wouldn't catch me now! And for extra precaution, I barricaded the entrance with a few more chairs and desks. I'm on the safe… At least for now.

Goddamn it, what the hell is happening now?! Yesterday I had President's crazy boytoy on my back, the day before was Green Day and Oasis all over again, and now I'm facing a zombie apocalypse made out of my own classmates and professors just asking for another Osaka incident. What even is today, anyway?! But, deep breath deep breath, I must remain calm, I must remain collected, those who panic or do harsh decisions are the first to go in those zombie movies. I slap myself a few times in the face in order to focus, used a handkerchief to stop the bleeding on my neck, and began to think… And just like that, suddenly the power went off for some reason, just my luck.

Okay, okay. My classmates have been either possessed or mind-controlled by those paper seals which I've seen quite a few times in movies and manga, and as far as I could see, if I can just snap it off from their foreheads, I can bring them to their senses or whatever. The problem, there are too many of them for me to concentrate in just one, and even if I take one other will probably fall from the vents and possess the guy again, and while there are stupid and single-minded, they're still dangerous considering how unrelenting and ruthless they are, considering not even a kick in the balls was enough to completely stop one of them. They won't stop at nothing to literally have a piece of me, and with that number of people, I'm afraid I might end just like a chunk of meat into my classmates' stomachs…

…

I wonder if I taste good.

Nah, no time for me to think about that(maybe later), I need to gather even more information about this whole situation. Let's see, aside from that, they somehow can identify me as not a complete human, so either it's smell or aura vision, even though Saji did say I have a very subdued aura. I also don't look any different from any student here, so it must be any of those two aspects that attract them to me, so I can use them as a distraction. Still, this will only delay their actions and it'll be useless in the long run or at all, so I must think of something else to get rid of those zombies or the seals they have. C'mon, Kokuto, think. Kind of hard thing to do since you have zombies banging on your back, but relax and think of something. C'mon, think…

…

The fire emergency system.

Of course! How could I not think of that? Even if the system is just a shower, the water will wipe out the seals from their foreheads and even if more comes from the ventilation they'll be swiped away by it too. Not to mention, the incantations written on them will probably get smeared all over it and it'll probably cancel out the curse in case other paper seals might come from the vents. I say 'probably' a lot, and that is because this is the only way out of this situation I can find right now, and if that doesn't work… I'll find another way, because this is what always happens. I'm Kokuto Kurokami, the man who has luck by his side, but for now, I'll have to roll with that one. But first of all, I picked my phone and dialed a certain number in it. ***RIN, RIN, RIN!*** , c'mon, pick it up…

 ***CLICK!***

 _'Kokkun, I know that I'm your girlfriend and all, but those calls can't be cheap. What is it that you want right now? It's not like you want to just hear my voice, right?'_

"Actually, Yuki… Yeah, I just want to hear your voice for today."

 _'…'_

"…"

 _'Creep.'_

"Just kidding. I just want to say that other there where you live it might start raining soon, so you better catch an umbrella if you're going out or anything."

 _'Huh… Much appreciated. That's all? So goodbye, Kokkun.'_

"Yeah, bye." And fortunately she just hung up in the best moment since there was a loud and echoing cracking sound just behind me. I turned around and noticed that the door that was trying it's best to hold the horde behind me started to crack, so I'll have to act fast and reach for the nearest emergency switch on the third floor since the lower are infested with other possessed classmates.

Using another barricade of chairs and desks for the door to last a bit longer, I opened up a window in order to create another pass way for the upper floor. I'll also need something, anything to wave away possible aggressors, so maybe I can use the extra bucket and mop in the locker next to the windows. I reached for said place in a flash and kicking away the lock, I opened the locker door…

"*HUFF! HUFF! Yuuto~… Pound me more~, pound your naughty teacher more~… *HUFF! HUFF!"

"Eh…" Only to find a teacher, Professor Yoshimoto, sniffing on some briefs with a very lewd, indecent expression on her face in a state of undress, one of her hands reaching for behind her skirt. There was a pause, and only a few seconds later she noticed me there, in which she froze like a statue. One, two seconds passed, and instead I completely ignored what she was doing and reached for the mop and the bucket next to her. "Well… If you excuse me, professor Yoshimoto…"

"No… Not… Not at all…" She mumbled as I picked both materials, placed them next to the windows and slowly but steadily closed the locker door in the hopes that, just like Schrodinger's cat, it just puts itself in a state that it's either there or not, hopefully not, and therefore I can simply ignore what just transpired and pretend it didn't happen at all. Before I could do just that, however, the ugly, overweight professor held the door and turned to me, looking at me dead in the eyes. "Uh, Kurokami… We're cool about that, right? You won't tell anyone, right?"

"Yeah, we're cool professor Yoshimoto, don't worry about it." I said, refusing to look at her back. She just sighs and closes the door herself, leaving alone with my own now soiled thoughts and the mop and bucket.

Why do these things keep happening to me? Whatever, I have no time to waste here. I reached for both the bucket and the mop and ran to the window in the hopes to reach the upper floors and flip the fire switch. If I can watch my own step climbing over to reach a serial killer, I have enough strength to do the same with just a flesh wound, a mop and a bucket. I jumped to the small balcony over the windows, turned around and jumped to the balcony leading to the upper floor…

 ***CATCH!***

"What the…?!" I was careless. I was able to reach the border, but I couldn't push myself up before something out of nowhere caught me by surprise! I turned around and could only gasp at my sight: There was a literal mountain of zombies climbing over each other in order to reach the floor I am in! They literally mounted themselves to reach me! What even is this curse! I couldn't even react appropriately for that when one of them went ahead and took a bite off my Achilles tendon! I growled in pain, my whole body feeling the blood loss and the flesh, muscles and even bones being ripped off from the rest of my body!

Out of desperation, I went ahead and kicked the assaulter with my other foot, using the boost to up myself to the balcony on the third floor, turning around and sitting on there, looking at the wound from the back of my foot! Holy shit, the guy seriously torn off part of my tendon! It hurts like hell! I couldn't even rest a little, the huddled crowd below would continue to grow and jumping and trying to reach for me! Well, it's now or never, I should test that idea I had no long ago: and with that in mind, I tossed the handkerchief that I was using to stop the bleeding on my neck into the crowd, and a moment, nothing, but then the turned to the direction I've thrown that piece of cloth, and the mountain of zombies in my direction just dissipated itself, instead reaching for the handkerchief on the ground below. Not just that, the ones that were pursuing me from the downer floor also jumped from the window to reach for the fallen cloth. So I was right, they're following me by the scent of my blood! This will work as a hell of a distraction… If I don't die from bloodless, of course.

 ***DRIP! DRIP!***

"Huh…?" I fell some cold drops falling on top of me, and so I looked up, and for some reason, a true waterfall starts to pour from the upper floors, covering me in water and dirt. What, is it raining just now? No, wait. That's not possible, the climate is cloudy but the water is coming just from the walls of Kuoh. So why?

No matter, the running water is spreading my blood all over the walls, making it harder for them to find the real me since they started to try to bite the wall and each other, not to mention that really, I was also right about the whole tainted talisman thing: The moment the drops would land on them and smear the ink on them, the bloodthirst in their eyes would disappear and they would fall to the ground, which means if I can flip the fire switch, this nightmare will end. That's kinda bad since I bet some of them will break a bone or two, but as for now, this is a small price to pay. I do wonder from where that water came from? I guess luck just sided with me yet again! Ow, I feel a sting on my tendon, making me almost slip off the balcony. Damnit, I can't lose any more time here, eventually the water will stop and the bigger source of blood will be me.

"Okay, time to hit the road and end this nightmare once and for a-…!" I turned around the face the window, and from the insides of it, I saw the silhouette of something staring back at me from the darkness. I couldn't even distinguish clearly what it was, a hand suddenly broke from the other side of the glass and dragged me inside by the face! So much strength, so much pressure, I thought that hand would smash my entire head like a tomato, but then, it threw me back even more inside the building, making me land on my back. All was dark, all was blurry, but I could feel cold touches, all over me. When I could tell up from down apart, however, I wished I didn't: now I see myself surrounded by those same mind-controlled classmate zombies, all looking as famine and berserk as the previous ones! I put myself sit and picked the mop and bucket to defend myself! "A-Ah! Don't come any closer! Get away from m-…!"

 ***SNAP!***

"…!" I let out a silent wail. I heard it, I heard my own acchilles tendon snapping while I tried to stand up, making me trip and hit my sides on the floor again! That was enough for the rest of the zombies to gang up on me, all trying to take a piece of me! I couldn't do anything besides wave the mop and bucket, trying to make them stay away but only making them want me more! "Stay away! Don't come any closer! I'm warning y-…!"

 ***BITE!***

"Ghhhh…!" And there goes another part of me, this time another piece of my left arm, blood and flesh running everywhere as I poked the assaulter who just took a bite out of me with the mop right onto his face. Big mistake: Another zombie came crushing down on it and broke the cleaning product in half, with me keeping the shortest part! Damn it, this can't go on! I can't move a foot, my arm has a wound gushing blood and more and more zombies are now appearing on the windows! I have to escape! "I have you know, I'll at least got a few days off school for all of this bullshit!"

And with that said, I smeared my jacket with the blood coming from the wound on my arm and wrapped it on the bucket's handle. And now I have an improvised morning star, but I won't use it as just a weapon. Oh no, with all of my strength left, I started to lasso my newly acquired weapon around in a circle, hitting and whisk all the zombies around me away, and once I had enough force, I tossed the bucket with my bloody jacket away to the window, in which they completely ignored me to pursue the fleeing ball and chains! This is my chance! First, I ripped my ruined sleeve on my left arm and wrapped it around my the wound in order to serve as a tourniquet and stop the bleeding for now, and then, using was it left of the mop, I used as a crutch to practically drag myself away from the classroom, into the door leading to the corridor…

What a state, such humiliation, I feel like crying like a child, my whole body is in pain, and the anemia is already catching up with me, soon I won't be able to stand or do anything and in the worst scenario I'll just be eaten by those mindless idiots of classmates of mine. No matter, I'm Kokuto Kurokami, the man who always has luck by his side, and this little test of character is joking if it thinks it can hold me back. Even so, I must hurry, even with all of my wounds patched I'm still leaving a trail of blood, and soon enough they'll be back. I'm in the middle of the corridor, and even from here, I can see the emergency switch for the fire alarm. I have only to take a few more steps, and then I shall be victorious on this trial…

Spoke too soon, the same moment I can hear footsteps behind me and across the corner of the corridor, and in no time, the place was flooding with more and more zombies, all going onto my direction at high speed! Even with this crutch I can't reach to the fire alarm just by walking, they're faster than me, so the only option I could see was a desperate attempt: I leaned on the mop so I could boost myself forward and gain some extra inches and, falling on my side, turned around and tossed the piece of the cleaning product against the little box! C'mon, just do it! They're already here!

'Half-breed! Half-breed! Half-breed!'

"C'mon, just work! Tama, guide me to victory!"

And then…!

 ***CLICK!***

And I did it! With the button hit, I could hear the electronic voice announcing in loud and clear tone that the system has been activated, and that passed the instructions of how to help yourself… Enough of that, I hear the system running around the school, and the showerheads right above me start to turn! The zombies are already in here ready to take a bite out of me, one of them shoving his finger inside my eyesocket and popping my eyeball out, but it is over! I can already hear the drops of water coming, that will wash away all of those pesky paper talismans and save me from this shithole hell! And for that I can only say: Lucky~ ⋆!

 ***DRIP!***

…

…?

"Huh…?" Wait, what? I thought the system was already taking it's time to be activated, but then, instead of a shower of pure water coming from the heavens, all I could feel was a single cold drop of water on top of me. I looked up with my single good eye, and then realized that the showerheads weren't pouring as they should, just… Oozing droplets of water instead. Before I could think of anything else, someone grabbed my foot and dragged to the crowd of zombies! I don't understand, what the hell is happening?! All the systems are on, and I did hit the button to turn them on! So why I am not safe, why am I instead being dragged to the crowd of zombies instead! That doesn't make any sense! There should be a pouring of water to save me from those…!

…

…!

The water tank…

The school's water tank… The water from before outside… Did it come from the water tank?! That only means… Someone damaged the water tank from before and… Like a curse disguised as a blessing… I can no longer use the emergency fire system, and that's why I'm being dragged into the zombie's crowd to be devoured by them!

 ***BITE! BITE! BITE!***

 _'Filthy half-breed! Filthy Half-breed! Filthy half-breed!'_

 ***RIP! RIP! RIP!***

 _'Because of you she's dead! Because of you! Because of You!'_

 _'Now die! Die! DIEEEEEEE…!'_

 ***BITE!***

…

Y'know, in Japanese, you cannot write 'fate'( **運** 命) without 'luck'( **運** )… However, the other part of 'fate' is equally as important. In other words… You cannot write 'fate'(運 **命** ) without 'life'( **命** ). Same goes for life: In order to find your path, your fate, besides luck, you also need the will to live!

In order to reach your destination, your will to live needs to be on par with your own luck!

And now, even in this hopeless situation, in this shithole of hell, I shall show you all the will of my **life** , the power of **will**! The power of **luck**! The power of **MY OWN FATE**!

 ***SLIT!***

"You guys want blood? So take it! **TAKE ALL OF IT**!" I said as I used my remaining forces to snap the sword-shaped hairclip Yuki gave me out of my hair and then slit the wrist of my left arm. The deepness of the wound combined with the blood accumulated there due to the previous tourniquet made the crimson liquid in it gushes all over the place, showering my controlled classmates and professors on it, which now would turn against each other or have the talismans tinted and the spell broken! They no longer pay attention to me, now onto each other, mounting among themselves in a true mosh pit, biting, hitting, clashing with each other! I used the bodies that would mount themselves to reach for the ceiling and once there, I picked the nearest showerhead of the fire alarm and snapped the little head off!

As expected, the water from the water tank has to go somewhere, so from the little hole I made there it started to pour more and more water from the upper floors! In the end, a true spring of water started to pour from that hole, bathing us all into it and flooding the floor within it! That's not nearly enough to get rid of all of them, so I rolled away from the mountain of bodies in the middle of the corridor, letting the waves of water take me away across the corridor since my body is too tired to do anything else. In the end, the flood took me to the infirmary. Great timing, I dragged myself into said place, closed the door and took my time to break a few things in order to patch myself up with a few bandages, shove my eyeball back into my skull and drink lots and lots of water. This won't stop the anemia, but it's better than nothing. But last but not least… Oh, crap… I opened a bottle of alcohol and bathed myself on it. The pain of it going all over the wounds in my body is making me groan in pain, but at least this will disinfect all my wounds and maybe disguise my scent from them. I threw the bottle away, and before I knew it, the infirmary was flooding as well, and the windows are starting to fog. No, that's not it, it is starting to rain… Good.

Standing up with the help of the help of the medical bed, I could at least walk towards the door to open it and see the current state of the corridors: all of my classmates and professors ganging on the door, now covered in their own blood and water, the small paper seals on their foreheads is no more. Instead, much more like ants leading to the anthill, they would follow a single path to the stairs downwards, and like I was expecting, all of them were either blank or tinted in red. I guess I got lucky again, who would've thought?

But this is not over yet, not now. Even with my hurt tendons, I followed the trace left by the paper talismans up to downstairs, where more and more of those would follow suit, leaving behind unconscious students and a few professors, I guess this did the trick, but at the cost of a pretty case of anemia on my end. I followed and followed, and those pieces of paper lead me to the exit of Kuoh academy, where previously possessed students were now mounting outside, bathing in the rain and gathering even more of those. Maybe they're leading me to their summoner? In that case, I am ready to face that bitch or bastard that stands on my way. I also found my jacket still wrapped on the bucket, intact if not missing a few things. I unwrapped it away from the bucket and wore it back since it's also getting a bit cold… Those parchments end up leading me to the forest around Kuoh academy, where I entered the dense plantation filled with rain and leaves, without losing the track of said talismans. My vision is starting to get a bit blurry, but I can't lose my conscious now, otherwise this attack might repeat itself, and I don't want that. C'mon, Kokuto, just a bit more… Just a bit more…

"Damn it, damn it all… Why did it start raining at this hour? My precious shikigamis and onofudas will be ruined." And just a few steps ahead, coming forth from the dense forest, I end up finding something quite strange: There was a dark, short-haired miko priestess kneeled on the ground, hands on it recovering all the paper talismans that would drag themselves to her. I could also see that her entire body was covered in words, incantations and other mantras, and besides her, another box of those same parchments, ready to be used. It's her, the one who caused this whole mess! "Well, no matter. I just need to recollect those who were not damaged, write them back and release them another day. Lord Suou did say that wrenched little half-breed whore frequents Kuoh academy, so all I have to do is…"

"Hey!" I called for her attention, and then the woman turned to me in a jump, showing me her deep grey eyes and pale skin in a surprised expression. So this is the girl who caused all of this mess. She's really pretty, but still.

"Y-You, what do you want, boy? If you don't mind, I'm busy right n-…!"

 ***PUNCH!***

"Ugh…!" And I didn't even let her finish her sentence when I used my good arm to give her a punch right in the throat! The hit combined with the scare was enough to make her lose her posture and fall onto the ground, tainting her miko attire with dirt and leaving her talismans onto the ground. I know it's bad for a man to hit a woman, but I was so livid that I didn't even care. She coughed up blood, and then I lifted her by the collar, as she spat on my face. "What in the world, lad?! What is your problem?! The heavens will curse you for landing a hit on a miko!"

"That's rich coming from an attempt murderer! I almost died because of your tricks and mind-controlled zombies, you old hag! And who the hell did you call a wrenched little half-breed whore?!" I spat back with another punch on her face! She turns back at me, but instead of spitting fire or cursing me even more, she looks surprised and concerned.

"W-Wait… What did you say?" She repeats herself, now contemplating her own navel as in deep in thoughts. Wait, what? Now I'm the one confused. "They pursued you…? But I told them to follow that little whore... I wrote specifically to follow half-breed blood… Unless… Don't tell me, lad… You're half-breed too?!"

 ***PUNCH!***

"Coherently! Speak coherently!" I punched her yet again, my arm not being able to withstand the blow and letting go of her, making her fly away from my grasp and hit the floor yet again. What even is this whole mess?! Is that another case of 'it's not you' coming from those supernatural creatures?! What even is going on?! I just want a normal life, is that too much to ask?! I turned back at the miko priestess, cracking my fingers a few times. "I have no problem in kicking you around like a soccer ball until I get all the answers I want as for now, so please just answer me direct and fast as possible, otherwise I'll seriously hurt you!"

"Seal!" And instead of any alternative I just handed to her, the miko extended a finger at me and shouted that word out of nowhere. Suddenly, from the box next to her, small paper seals from before started to fly all over me and then around me, all of them emitting a small glow while at if before now sticking themselves on me. "Now suffer! Half-breed that I wanted or not, this seal will prevent you from using your power and even leech off from you in order to restrain you even further! This is my win, Half-br-…!"

 ***PUNCH!***

"You're too loud. Shut up." And I cut her mid-sentence with a hook-punch on her jaw, making her whole head move around and then stop. After such, her entire face went blank, and her whole body trembled until she no longer could stand on her two feet for too long. Ah man, did I do it too strong? "Oops, I just wanted to knock you out, but I guess I also broke you jaw. My bad, I mean it."

"How… Is this… Possible… You don't… Have… A tint of magical power… At all…" And those were her final words before she fell onto the ground, unconscious, and the paper seals around me lost their strengths and did the same. I guess this is my win.

"Well, I guess this is my win. **Lucky~** ⋆ **!"** I said to no one, giving myself a pat on the back for that victory and, just in case, picking the rest of the talismans that were in box ripping them in a million pieces. I also picked her golden headgear and red strings as trophies for myself. There, no more of those pesky paper seals even if she was still councious. I turn now to the unconscious body of the miko woman, getting wet by the pouring rain, her body still twitching after that nice punch to the jaw. "And now, what to do with you? I would love to call for the ambulance, but they will asks questions about it… Maybe I can drag her to a shady clinic around and have her treated with no questions asked… But I'll be spending money again. Oh man, what to do…?"

"You can't stop worrying about that now, sir." A new voice echoes around the rainy forest, and so with my remaining forces I turn around to see another figure standing right next to the knocked out miko under the rain: A tall, feminine young lass around my age if not older, with long black hair wrapped in a tall ponytail and red eyes, contrasting with her pale skin. She was also wearing a miko outfit, and was walking around with socked wood sandals and being shielded by a red paper umbrella. Wait, what? I do recognize her from somewhere. I turn completely my focus onto her…

"Himejima…?"

"Oh…?"

"You're… Himejima, right? From the third-year, the second Madonna of Kuoh academy, Himejima, right?" I inquire her, pointing a finger at her, and her crimson eyes. There is no mistake, she does look a lot like my senior Akeno Himejima, in fact I think she is Akeno Himejima! Wait, does that mean that senior Himejima is also wrapped in those supernatural affairs? Instead, the young lass just shifts her stare to her own hand for a few seconds, and then gasp to herself now turning to me with a smile.

"Oh, I guess I know of whom you're talking about." She declares with a bow. I couldn't help but to blush a little and bow as well, politeness in the first place, of course. "Well, I am a Himejima, but I doubt the one you're looking for. My name is Suzaku Himejima, and is a pleasure to meet you."

"L-Likewise, Miss Himejima. Kokuto Kurokami, that's, that's my name." I bow back at her. So polite, she might look a lot like Himejima, but this Himejima does not ooze that same deadly aura the other Himejima does. Even so, I prepare myself for a proper combat in case she wants to pay equals for her fallen comrade I just knocked out. "So… Miss Himejima, what business you have here? If you… If you want to avenge your fallen comrade, well, I won't be easy on you, no matter how pretty you are. Although I rather not hit women…"

"None of that, Mr. Kurokami. I'm just here to stop whatever my little subordinate's plans were unraveling and make sure that nothing like happens ever again, but it seems that I shouldn't have been worrying to much with people like you around." Even with my subtle threats, she doesn't seem fazed at all, maintaining that same smile from before. Instead, she picks said fallen subordinate by the arm and after a quick spell to mend her wounds, she hangs her arm around herself and used herself as support for the other. "Botan, you already caused too much trouble as for today. Please, like I said before, do not act without my orders and never targets Kuoh or any other devil territory, understood? You were lucky Mr. Kurokami was noble enough to not kill you."

"Lady… Suzaku…" The miko woman, Botan was her name?, only mumbled under her breath, indicating that she's still alive. I'm glad at least for that, I won't need a murder weighting on my conscious, and she won't attack Kuoh anymore, that's another Bonus. Even so.

"You should treat her quickly." I warned Miss Himejima, and she turns around to look at me. "I read this one a book once: I punched her right in the throat. I didn't crush her larynx, but I think I hit her hyoid bone. If you don't treat her, it might swell and she'll stop breathing. Take that as a warning… Miss Himejima."

"I shall." She simply says, nodding. That's great, that's all I'm going to say. I turned around to walk home and maybe treat those wounds further and get a blood transfusion, but Miss Himejima's voice calls for me yet again. "Wait a minute, Kurokami. Your wounds… Don't you want me to treat them as well? You seem very hurt, and your bleeding might kill you if you don't properly fix them. Let me help you."

"No, thanks Miss Himejima. I'm already better, and the bleeding is not bothering me much now." I lied. The wounds and the bleeding hurt like hell, but I don't want to look weak right in front of the woman who caused them in the first place. And even so, for some reason, I no longer feel as tired or hurt as before, I don't know why. Her looks shift of those of concern, and I try to wave them away with a smile and a hand. "Besides, I'm not completely human either. Wounds like that is a walk in the park for me…"

"I see. So you're not completely human as well." She says, and for that I can only make a blasé pose as this was the best thing in the world. Not really, not much, but it does feel kinda nice and I find some solace in finally knowing my origins. Still, I won't join him nor I have any interest in meeting this Azazel. She stops me on my tracks yet again. "Kurokami, you said that Botan attacked your school, correct? So I can only assume that you are also a student there. After all, you don't see old enough to be a teacher."

"Why yes, I do frequent Kuoh academy. It's not much, but it is cheap, and it's closer from home. So yeah, I do." I shrugged to her. I think I know where this is going, so I can only frown a little against her smile. After all, her surname is Himejima, and there's only other Himejima that I know, and she frequents Kuoh academy.

"Very well, then. So, Kokuto Kurokami, would you mind accepting a humble request from yours truly?"

"I'm sorry, but _no_."

"…"

"…"

"You don't even know what I would've requested from you."

"Don't know, don't care either. Apologies, miss Himejima, but I already dealt with that subordinate of yours for today, so as for now, I just want to finish my day as soon as possible, so if you excuse me I shall take my lead and forget everything that happened today." I said dismissing my jacket and rolling it around me a few times until it completely served as a cape around me, the sleeves rolling around my neck and shoulders. I hate to be rude to pretty girls like her, but I can only assume she wants me either for my half-blood or to befriend the Himejima of Kuoh academy, and I want neither of those alternatives, so better bait out. "So if you excuse me, I hope you have a nice day, treat Miss Botan right and leave alon-…!"

 ***TRIP!***

 ***BAM!***

"Kurokami, are you ok-…?"

"I'm fine, thanks for asking." I said as I dismissed the jacket that compassed my entire body and then stood up from the ground on a jump, standing on my two feet after an embarrassing trip onto the floor. It was a bit on the nose for me, but at least I got what I wanted: My jacket completely covered all the wounds on my body, so I could push it away and use Tama's other abilities. I turn back to Miss Himejima, and nod. "Thank you very much for your concern, but as you can see, I'm okay."

"Huh? Your wounds, they're all healed? How is that possible?" She questions me yet again. For that I have no answer, that is another of Tama's abilities, the reason how I was able to withstand so much damage from my previous encounbter with Mr. Tyrion and have survived and in the next day I am all patched up. It's not exactly healing of course, but something a bit more complicated. But like Hell I'll admit it to her, so I can leave her with another question.

"Did they really heal, Miss Himejima, or during the moment between before and after I was covered by my jacket, they were there at all in the first place? You can say that that were none and all under my jacket this whole time. We might never know." I question her back, and as always when I use this ability, my nose starts to bleed, followed by a light headache.

Yeah, if a cat it is to put inside an opaque box with a geiser monitor linked to a hammer above a flask of poison, the experiment says that the cat is both alive and dead as long as the box remains sealed, and likewise, I am both wounded and unharmed under anybody's eyes under my jacket, and using Tama's ability, I can increase the chances of me being unharmed by just 1%, and thus, I'm unharmed once the cover is gone. Practical and useful, that is what my **Schrodinger** ability is about. I can't use it all the time though, otherwise the quantum particles and my brain my not handle the excess of information due to colliding conflicting memories of the paradox of both states on a single body, and thus can leave me with brain damage, but let's not think too much about it.

"And now, with all of that done, I bid you goodbye, Miss Himejima." I said turning around, picking my jacket from the floor and sniffing a few times and cleaning my running nose, Miss Himejima saying nothing as I worked my way out of the forest. Before I could escape from her grasp, however, I could hear her voice echoing through the deep woods and under the rain of that evening…

 _"You can say that. I rather say… ' **See you another time** ', Kurokami. Huhuhuh…"_

Brr… What a bad omen that was. Even after all that has happened to me today, this is by far the worst thing. And the worst part is, even if I don't want to, I'll eventually met her yet again ever since I entangled myself into this supernatural world, with no chances of escape. But taking a look at my trophies for today brings a sense of solace, and it also means that I've won another day. Yeah, might come hell or high water, I'm Kokuto Kurokami, the man who always has luck by his side, and as long as I have both luck and spirit, nothing shall stop me.

Even so… I just can't stop trembling. Even luck won't stick in the worst moments, I also need a lot of spirit. A lot of spirit. Not to mention, I just discover that Akeno Himejima, another of my classmates, is also entangled in the supernatural, and maybe the one that Botan woman was looking for, being a half-breed, just like me even… Indeed, I need a lot of spirit…

"Oh, Kokkun."

"Yuki…?" And in my way to Kuoh academy, I end up bumping into Yuki on the way. There she was, wearing some expensive ash-coloured coat I can see it's from Gianfranco Ferré's new collection and some Gucci black boots, being shielded by a Gucci umbrella. She looks really nice in those, as expected from my not!girlfriend, but that doesn't explain her being here. Don't tell me she's also messing around with the supernatural, that would suck a lot. "Hey there, Yuki. What gives? It's the end of classes and is practically raining cats and dogs, any reason for a princess-like girl like you to be around Kuoh at this hour?"

"How rude. I have you know, Kokkun, I got a bit worried about you with this hellish downpour…" She inflates her own cheeks in a clear sign that she's upset, and from her purse, she then handles me a small, colorful piece of cloth. Under closer inspection, I noticed that it is actually an umbrella. I snap my stare back at her. "… So I brought you one of my patented umbrellas so you wouldn't get wet. But it seems that… Someone has been careless with the rain. Honestly, you're lucky to have a girlfriend such as myself around."

"Yes, I guess so." I let out a small laugh and scratched the back of my head in a bit of shame, seeing how soaked I am right now. I even sneezed a bit due to the cold. Ah, I hope the cold doesn't catch up with me. I open the umbrella to also protect myself against the rain. Only now I notice that this one is also Gucci. Talk about a rich, spoiled girl. "Thanks, Yuki."

"No problem, Kokkun. Just don't forget to bring it back to me tomorrow, I might be very gentle, but those are not cheap. Stay sharp, asshole." She shrugs, turning around to take her way home, I can assume. The rain was very dense, so she escapes my line of sight not much later, leaving me alone with my own thoughts. I still need to pick up my stuff inside the Kuoh building, bypass the mountain of bodies around and call the ambulance for what happened now, but at least I won't be taking any more rain. I guess things are starting to look brighter even with the rainy mood…

… Maybe the luckiest I've ever been as for now is for having a cute not!girlfriend.


	10. Tiger vs Dragon, deathmatch

**Hello! This time I had the time writing this chapter, which was really nice change of pace this time around! Yep, this time, Kokuto will fight someone who might be a little stronger than him, and unlike other encounters, he might lose himself a bit there. No spoilers, but have a great read and don't forget to R &R, and always, I thank you for your interest in this fic thus far!**

 **DxD belongs to it's respective owners and magazine. All the OC's are mine, tho.**

* * *

Man, do I feel like crap today...

This week has been nothing but a rollercoaster of events, revelations, stress and more importantly, ragged clothes, and even with me coming on top of all of those situations, I can't shake the pain and fatigue all those freaky accidents had on me and the dreadful sensation that something is still not quite right. Not to mention, the anemia and headache are catching up with me, so the only thing I can do for today is to lie down on my bed on my room and suffer alone in this big house of mine, waiting for something to happen today.

At least today I can do just that, considering that Kuoh has been closed as for now because of another 'accident' that happened yesterday, they so happen to found just a handful of students, professors and staff mounted over each other on a big bloody orgy, all of then bruised, bloody and unconscious, but alive. Yet again I played the hero in a situation that in the end had nothing to do with me or my heritage, and discovered a new thing about the supernatural side of Kuoh academy. Not only the student council is led and controlled by a true devil Princess Sona Sitri, but another classmate of mine, my senior Akeno Himejima, is both related to exorcists, she might or mightn't be just like me, a half-breed of something else. Just in a week I discovered so much about them and what they are, and they're not even trying to blend in, they stand out in the crowd like two of the three Madonnas of Kuoh Academy. Speaking of which, I wonder if senior Rias Gremory, is also related to the supernatural as well, somehow…

So much to think about, so little time, I think my brain damage is getting worst by just thinking about it, and the headache and anemia are not helping in the slightest. Y'know what? I have no reason to involve myself into this, and as long as they don't meddle with my life or try to harm me, I don't care much for what they're doing or why. I just want to enjoy the spring of my youth, and worrying about something I don't even understand is a waste of time. Besides, I have my own problems to deal with, no reason to brainstorm something that I can't control, I should be thinking about how I am supposed to enjoy my free time away from school after the accident…

Let's see. Is there anything a healthy high school student such as myself can do on a cloudy day such as today? Maybe I can go downstairs and watch anime while eating junk food until I'm bored; I can call Yuki and so we can have a slumber party at her house eating expensive candy and play video games; I can go outside watch a movie and see the beautiful cloudy sunset, or maybe I can watch porn and masturbate to the point I reach technobreak; the possibilities are endless since mom is still in her business trip and today is a free day. But if there's something better than all of those above is thus:

I can simply do nothing all day, and that shall satisfy me.

What can I say? I'm in my teenage years, doing nothing is my answer for everything for a while. I'm too old to be thinking about the next meal or when my favorite anime will get a new season or my favorite game will have a sequel, yet not old enough to worry about taxes, bills, job or my own future. I am at the age that I can act as the most despicable member of society and the scum of the modern world, and nobody can or will judge me for that. Besides, while I do nothing all day, I might plan what I can or I want to do for the next few days, weeks, months, years, and how those will help me in the long run. Maybe I can start playing that Fate/Grand Order Gacha game and maybe make myself some friends, or maybe I can plan my gaming career or youtube superstar and get myself some cash doing something I enjoy. Or maybe I can simply go to the pachinko parlor again and try my luck against some machines before the manager spots me and kick me out…

So tired, so much time to do anything and everything, yet choosing to do nothing. Being the scum of society feels nice from time to time, I don't even need to change for today, I can simply walk around house wearing my PJs and eating junk food and fast food, watching tv and playing some app games at the same time. I can even drown myself at my bathtub until I'm like a like a raisin. I would certainly think I'm a complete loser and a waste of oxygen and space if I only stop a little to think how bad of an idea that is, but for now, I should enjoy it as I can.

…

…

I'm bored.

I'm bored for doing nothing.

What is wrong with me? I can't do nothing all day, yet I don't want to do anything either. I'm stuck in this limbo of actions and desires that will only frustrate me even more by the end of the day, and in way or another, it'll be another day wasted. Being a waste of oxygen is also troublesome, as it seems. Maybe I can try to do something productive today and if I feel like dropping dead at any moment from boredom or lack of will, I shall do so. Maybe a walk in the park might clean my head a little, and in case it rains, I'll also have my trusty Gucci umbrella with me, a little present from my dear not!girlfriend Shirayuki Shirogane. Which reminds me, I must take extra care with this one, since she wants it back once Kuoh opens again. I already messed up the cute sword-shaped hairclip that she gave me, it was cheap but it was from her, so I had to cherish it, and now I have this Gucci umbrella which probably could save a starving family for weeks, so I cannot afford to lose it, not for now.

Y'know what? Thinking about what to do or not to do won't take me anywhere, I will take a walk around and decide what to do or not during it. I might watch a movie, I might see stupid cat videos on a bench, I might find myself a few friends, I might choose to jump in traffic and meet my own demise, who knows? I don't, so nothing to lose now. I pick my phone, adjust my clothes a little and rolled myself on my bed so I can finally touch my soles on the cold wooden floor under. I stand up, stretch myself, and yawn a bit, taking my way downstairs to first do some chores before heading out. Some might think it's a bit strange someone my age to do those so early in the morning. Thing is, not many people know that my mother is Yozora Kurokami either, possibly the laziest genius Keio Alumna ever. I know how to cook, clean, dish and wash all because my mother has no idea how to any, and so while she works to put food on the table, I cook and clean said food and table for both of us. Life is strange, sometimes…

Anyway, I put some of my clothes into the washing machine, including those soaked in blood and rain, clean up some dishes from yesterday's emergency dinner of bread, riceballs and dried kelp and help myself with some bread and butter and milk while I look at today's mail. Mother pay all of her bills and we don't have distant relatives so there are not many letters that come to our mail, it's usually just bills, restaurant and shop pamphlets and death threats from my classmates and professors, nothing too big. At least is what I thought, but then I notice that there was something else in today's mail. Taking a quick look at passing letters, I saw a special red envelope among the other white ones, and this one was written specially for me in dark black letters. Oh ho, that's new, usually what I get are prank cards or some mean-spirited mails from some of my peers, but this one sounds innocent enough. I discard the other cards to instead check this one. I pick the card-opener on top of mom's desk to see what's It all about. The moment I did it so, a small little ticket of Kuoh stadium dropped on the table, and with it came a small letter…

* * *

 _'Dear Mr. Kokuto Kurokami,_

 _It is will good grace that we inform you that you have won our special anniversary lottery after your 100th shopping spree on Kuoh's shopping center. As such, we invite you to see an exclusive game in one of our VIP seats for today's Hanshin Tigers vs. Chunichi Dragons, which will be held in Kuoh Stadium at 18:00. Further explanations will be given at the local kiosk. See you there, don't be late._

 _Kuoh shopping center._

* * *

Oh my, it looks like that, like everything else that usually happens, a program just opens up right in front of me. With everything else that has happen to me though, I doubt this is legit, and if anything, it is just another trap for me again. But then again, I have nothing better to do today might as well see what's this fuzz all about, and who knows, maybe this is truly a ticket for today's game and I'll be enjoying myself a nice little baseball game with two surefire rivals of such. It's not like I like the sport of something, but exclusivity, let alone free from a lottery, is something you can't deny.

I still have a date with Yuki this prolonged holyday, so maybe a small break for a 'me' time won't be so bad, and who knows, maybe I can find myself enjoying some of those festivities and find myself a buddy or two, people who are miles away from Kuoh academy and won't hate me from petty reasons or so. Too bad it's only one ticket otherwise I could invite her, but I doubt a rich, spoiled, self-absorbed princess like her would even try to think of joining me to watch a 'commoner's game', that's my not!girlfriend for you. Oh well, I still have time to kill until 6p.m., better make myself some lunch, watch my series and spare myself some good clothes so I can better what whatever awaits me at Kuoh stadium…

* * *

 _'Heeeeeh~, so my cute little Kokkun got a special ticket for a super-special baseball game today~. That's soo nice, darling~. Mama wish she was there for you so we could watch it together and talk about it later~!'_

"It's not like that, mom. I just got lucky with a small lottery from that store we always buy books from, and it's not like we don't have some money to spare and watch it together any time." I said back to my mom through the phone as I walk to Kuoh stadium wearing my best Armani Exchange black shirt and jeans and jeaned jacket, Santoni shoes and a small purse. Here I am on the phone with my daily call for mom, and honestly, I didn't need to say that I was about to go into a baseball game just to make her upset, but that would make me feel bad otherwise. And now she's mad at me. Sigh. "C'mon, mom. You're always on your trips, and sometimes I need a little break for a 'me' time. I don't even like baseball that much! You don't even like baseball at all!"

 _'But it's unfair~. I also want some time with my precious son Kokkun, even if it's some lame game of baseball~. That's unfair with mama, Kokkun!'_ And she whines some more across the line, and the second-hand embarrassment is starting to creep out on me. If only she knew what kind of situation I wrapped myself into since she left. I hear her pout one more time. _'Okay then! When I come back, we'll go on a shopping Spree around Akihabara and then we'll eat as many sweets as we possibly can! Kokkun, that's a promise!'_

"Yeah, yeah. Don't get too fired up about it, mom, or else you'll get sick again." I said back, and I hear her entire rage die down and she giggles across the phone. I can't believe the woman by the other line is in her late 40's, and if anything, people would mistake her from my older braindead sister. I take one final step into the parking lot leading to Kuoh stadium and turned my attention to the phone. "Okay mom, I'm gonna hang up now. Call you back when the game ends, okay? And try not to send me another piece of Russian porcelain. The last one scared the neightbors and they even called the cops. Please, just ask me if I want something."

 _'But they're soooooo cuuuuuuteeeeee~.'_ She whines again.

"Okay mom, bye." And I hang the phone up, taking a step forward into the crowded place filled with euphoria and expectations for today's game…

Or that's how it should be, but instead I come to face with a completely empty parking lot at dusk, not a single living soul around, only the light coming from light posts nearby, indicating how late it was. The setting sun, the lack of sounds, I look at my watch and notice that it's almost 18:00, yet not a single sound around, not even an spec of euphoria or a single drop of passion or sportsmanship. Instead, I got nothing. Complete and utter loneliness…

I knew it, something or someone set me in. I even researched a bit and I figure that there was no game this season even near Kuoh Stadium, much less between the Hanshin Tigers and the Chunichi Dragons. A chill runs down my spine as I approach further and further into the stadium, determined to go in and see what's this is all about since I'm already here anyway, so I got nothing to lose. After all, I'm Kokuto Kurokami, the man who always has luck by his side, and I don't back down from a challenge. Besides, which is the best way to end this crazy week then by accepting something akin to an invitation to death? I guess things can't get more romantic than that…

"Hey young man, over here…"

"…?" But before I could even reach the ticket kiosk, I was approached by a guy leaning on a ramen stand. Wait a minute, since when he has been there? I didn't see him before, and he just appeared out of nowhere! Despite being a chariot-like little ramen stand, there is no way for him to run this close to me without me noticing! But I need to be polite, so I bowed to him and gave him a small hand wave. "I mean, hello there sir. Keep up with the hard work, some people might be coming soon, anytime. I mean, I think someone will."

"nah, I doubt. There is no game today, so you can bet this stadium will be as empty as a graveyard." The owner of the moving ramen shop, a dark-skinned guy with an epic afro and aviator sunglasses, despite the fact that we're at dusk, took one final drag of his cigarette and flicked the butt to a random direction, blowing off a cloud of smoke out of his mouth. Well, now I know this isn't a dream nor I am being delusional, something set me up for this encounter. I sigh, I think there's no either way but down this path I chose. The ramen guy then turns to me. "Speaking of which, sonny, what are you doing here? You're not going to vandalize this place, are you? I will have to call the police otherwise."

"No need to, sir. I'm just here… To meet someone… I guess?" I turn to him and shrug, earning even more confused looks from this gentleman. Even I don't know what I am supposed to do here, but I got this ticket and this apparently fake invitation, so I can only do one thing from here. The uncle from the ramen stand smiled, standing from his improvised sitting place and putting himself behind the counter of the ramen shop.

"How about I make you a ramen before you find this 'someone', sonny? After all, a ramen always put a smile on people's faces. Especially when they're from the infamous Hebihara stand, ya dig?" He laughs behind the counter, and I didn't even answer his invitation, he was already preparing the soup, noodles and ingredients for a bowl of ramen. I tried to say for him to stop, but I shut myself up after I hear a small groan from my stomach. Huh, I forgot that I didn't got time to prepare myself dinner before heading out, and lunch was long ago. I guess it won't hurt to eat some ramen in the middle of the week, and with that in mind, I passed through the small curtain in front of the counter and make myself some space. In no time, the man by the other side of the counter, I assume his name is Hebihara or something, passed me a bowl of ramen, full of noodles, soup, narutomaki, bamboo sprouts and those other things you see in those. "There you go, sonny, a special Tokyo Shoyu ramen for my very special costumer! So eat up before it gets cold!"

"Well then, thanks for the food." I clapped my hands together and snapped a pair of chopsticks to then start slurping on those noodles, which were surprisingly delicious and firm for such a homemade ramen. Not even in the best ramen restaurants I've ever been they tasted that good, must be family recipe or something, because the flavour is also quite exquisite. As I munched on the endless noodles and delicious pork chops, Mr. Hebihara again leaned himself on his stand and lighten up a cigarette. He let out a small laugh with it.

"Walk towards the path of hell… For the last circle of it is the one closest to heaven… Fool, pursue the heaven's smile with a frown… Because this is how you'll find your lover's true heart. Today, a star shall die against the wheel of fortune, destroyer of hangers and empresses."

"Huh…?" I stopped from eating even further into the bowl of ramen to look at Mr. Hebihara as he just finishes his mumblings. Haiku? What a strange hobby for someone running a ramen stand to have, but who am I to judge. The owner of the stand blinks back at me, adjusts his aviator sunglasses and let out a small laugh, again finishing his cigarette in one go and flicking the butt away.

"Oh nothing, sonny. I just felt like reciting some poetry in this beautiful night. Even with such cold and clouds, the universe can hold some true beauties along its melancholy, don't you think? I think so." He laughs yet again, and for that I only shrug and return to my ramen, not a single care in the world as he flicks another cigarette. Some time passed as I finally finish my bowl of noodles, putting it down the counter and let out a small belch of satisfaction, clipping the chopsticks together and clapping my hands a few times.

"Well, thanks for the food. It was the best ramen I've ever eaten." I declare, cracking my knuckles a few times and reaching for my purse to pick my wallet. "So, how much is it? I know it's kinda like a present since I didn't order anything, but I should pay you anyway. It was really delicious."

"Nah, leave it be, sonny. I sometimes need money but making ramen for others is a passion which I can leave without it." He laughs, putting himself again behind the counter across me and instead handing me a small golden card with a drawing on it. The back of the card has the drawing of a golden heart, and the front of it, a small picture of a cartoonish devil also printed on the gold. That's kinda neat, that's kinda cool, I wonder if those are some sort of collectables or something. "In fact, I'm going to hand you this small card for our limited edition collection. You're in luck today, dear costumer, not everyone is able to pull such a lucky card the first time."

"I guess so. Anyway, thank you very much for the meal, and here's the money." I slap two 1000 yen bills on the counter and turned around to pass through the red curtains that gate the ramen shop, waving a goodbye for such a nice ramen stand owner. He did say that such bowl was on the house, but honestly that would make me feel bad for his business, so no worries in spending a few notes on him. I pick the card he gave me and put it in my wallet instead. When I turned around, I see him turning off the lights on his little ramen stand and put himself in the front of it in order to carry around it. Leaving so soon? "So you're already leaving. Oh well, have a nice night and take care of yourself, sir."

"Same to you, sonny. Same to you." He laughs one more time, flicking one last butt of cigarette before heading away, carrying his little ramen stand by its wheels. I turned around to face my own destiny that lies in the Kuoh stadium, but before I could take the first step, I heard Mr. Hebihara's voice one more time. "Go ahead and face your destiny, fool. You shouldn't play with fate as such, but once you get to know yourself, not even the devil can stop you. Now, to the gates of madness."

"Yeah, I guess." I sigh one more time, taking my way inside the stadium…

Just as expected, the inside of the stadium was just as deserted as the parking lot, absent of any form of light or life as far as the eye could see. There was no one guarding the ticket Kiosk either, so my only choice was to leave the ticket there as just a formality. It was unnerving, but at the same time not as frightening as I thought it would be, a peaceful walk in the deserted Kuoh stadium, hearing nothing but the sounds of my footsteps and the cold wind of this night. I belch one more time, still with the fresh smell of shoyu Tokyo ramen in my system, and turn forward towards the heart of the stadium, where I could see a bright light coming from. What the… The kiosks and corridors are showered in darkness, yet the field is shining a bright light. Instinctively, I followed the source of such, and in the middle of the corridor, I start to hear a song. A very known, yet peculiar song…

 _'Seven… Seven… Seven… Seven…_

 _Seven Seven Seven! Seven Seven Seven!_

 _A Distant Star…_

 _… Was once his home!'_

Followed by very old instrumentals and maintaining a rather too cheesy and cheerful tone, I could hear better as I approach the light of the stadium, my steps becoming more and more rapid as adrenaline starts to keep up with me. I remember that song, it's from one of those intros from one of those old tokusatsu shows mom still has in VHS! That's the Ultraseven Theme song!

 _'Ultra seven~! Fighter Seven~!_

 _Ultra Seven! Seven~! Seven~!_

 _Onwards to the edge of the galaxy…_

 _Use your Ultra Eye and… STRIKE!'_

What's happening right now? Is this a pre-game show? But wait, today has no game for it to have any kind of pre-game anything! I start to run towards the light, which becomes brighter and brighter as I come closer to the field, to the point it starts to blind me. In the end, there was only a bright white light in front of me, and regardless, I entered the world of blank, the world of lights…

 _'Seven Seven Seven! Seven Seven Seven!_

 _Dan Moroboshi…_

 _… Is his borrowed name!_

 _Ultra Seven~! Hero Seven~!_

 _Ultra Seven~! Seven Seven~!'_

The lights died down, my vision became accostumated with the sudden brightness, and before my eyes, another scenario would draw: In a field bathed by the bright lights of the game spotlights, I saw myself at the heart of Kuoh Stadium, a large baseball field with countless seat arrows and by the middle of it, a field shining brighter than any emerald, all seats in a deep tint of red, but all of them vacant, just like in the corridors, just like in the parking lot, there wasn't a single evidence of life anywhere near here, except me and another figure in front of a microphone stand at the Pitcher's mount: A tall, pale gentleman of long, slicked-back hair and crass and hunky face structures, who looked just a few years older than me, wearing a social black suit, singing to his heart's content. Before I could say or do anything, he sang the last verse of the theme song, letting a small tear escape his closed eyes…

 _'Defeat the great fire-breathing monster…_

 _Use your Ultra Beam and… STRIKE!'_

And now, silence.

…

…

"You, up there in the seats… Do you know who I am?" And picking the microphone from the supporter, he asks right into it, making the whole stadium tremble against his deep voice. I was the only one here besides him, but even so, the spotlights all turned to me like I was the star of the show, which I am by the way, and the eye-cam even had the power to show my image on the screen. Yep, he's talking about me. I sigh, and turn myself to face him.

"No." Was my simple answer. The man at the pitcher's mount let a small chuckle escape his lips through the microphone.

"Figures. But I do know who you are… And what you are, Kokuto Kurokami." He answers me through the microphone, and again turns his eyes in my direction as I walk down the stairs to the field. "Second question: Did you know my father?"

"I'm sorry if this sounds rude or anything, but was I supposed to?" I ask him back, now putting myself on the small barrier separating the crowd seats to the field, lifting a leg and supporting myself on it. Even though he's a good few meters away from me, I could now grief and sorrow on his face as he turns his dark eyes at me. That same dead stare, like when I faced Mr. Tyrion, oozing complete hatred and despair for the world. I guess I end up putting salt into a wound. Damn, now I few bad. Before I could apologize, he returns his mouth back at the microphone.

"My father… Loved Ultraman, specially Ultraseven, his favorite of them all. Every day he would invite me to watch it with him, he would remember and sing without a missing beat the theme song, and of course, merchandise, he had an entire room with Ultraman merchandise, so much he had a small shrine for his favorite superhero. What I just sang it is nothing compared for the passion he had when he did." He said in a stoic voice, but behind such, I could see melancholy, pure and unaltered sadness in it. He's also a lot of past tenses, so I can only assume the worst of all of that. "Of course, his life was more than just an Ultraman Otaku: He was a loving husband, a great and iconic father for both me and my older sister, and an exemplary leader of a clan, our clan and legacy. He was a perfect and good man, and a powerful and noble devil. Even when our clan was on the brink of a collapse, he would smile and say that he could handle it, and for a while, he did…"

"You're using so many past tenses, so I can only assume what happened. And for that, you have my condolences." I said back to him. He ignored me and continued with his story.

"Unfortunately for all of us, it was a time of war between the Three Factions; angels, fallen angels and devils entangled on an unending war, shredding blood, tears and sweat from all sides, dragging each other to the brink of destruction. Several clans disappeared, factions would appear and disappear in a blink of an eye, death and causalities would appear all the time, and I would lose acquaintances, friends, relatives… And one day, my father ended as one of them. Ever since, the clan would only ruin itself." He continued with his sad tale, having a sweet time to take a small breath between sentences, as well as recompose himself from his apparent grief. "My big sister and mother tried their best in order to bring our clan back to the safe position it once was, but it was all for naught. Our clan, the Decarabia, fell and became extinct after my sister had to marry a low-class devil. I was just a little brat, but life became tough from then on: I had to work under nosy upper-class devils, some of them which I shared the same lifestyle as once, my mother had to do unsavory favours just so I could get the least amount of education and class, and I refuse to acknowledge the one I once considered my dear sister. In the end, my father, the Pillar of our clan, fell, and with it, our grace, our glory, our honor… Our entire identity. And for that, there is only one man responsible, a single man managed to toss our name into the mud, and step on it, shattering all that the Decarabia once had."

"That's a really nice story and all, but hearing this, I can only assume who you're talking about. And I, Kokuto Kurokami, has any reason to be here. Oh man, this is gonna suck, isn't it?" I mumble to myself on the sideways, coming to a single conclusion to be here, and not a very pleasant one, making me sigh in misery. I mean, I'm glad that they got the right guy this time instead of dragging me into something I wasn't supposed to, but on the other hand, being someone's target might be an even worse fate.

"Yes, that man… That man. Call him the arrogance of God, call him the goat emissary, call him the scapegoat of Jehovah, the leader of the Watchers, the Governor General of the Grigori, the wings of everlasting darkness, call him whatever you want. I will always know him as the fallen angel bastard who killed my father, and stomped on our clan altogether. That man… Azazel!" And finally let out his anger flow, angrily tackling the micro-supporter in front of him to a side and crying in total rage, a red dangerous aura coming out from his being. From my end? I jump from the seats to the field, and start to walk towards him, at least to a safe distance. Mr. Decarabia then turns to me, oozing hatred and rage. "But today, today, I shall get my revenge on him, Azazel, by killing his one and only son, by the eyes of my father in the Afterlife, after my ode of love for him in the shape of the Ultraseven theme song! I have been improving my own skills and abilities since I was a brat, studying every single day and training even single night, tracking every single woman he had sleep with, in order to target the only being with his flesh and blood! And once I'm done with you, Kokuto Kurokami, I shall parade your head in the Underworld, proving my worth as a High-class devil, and bring that Bastard the same despair and grief that I've felt ever since that day! So, Kokuto Kurokami, the son of the Arrogance of God, the Crownless Prince, the spawn of the Watcher, what are your last words?!"

"…" I only see bloodthirst and hatred in his eyes, nothing more, nothing less, yet I can't shake the feeling of pity and somehow love I feel for his cause. He must've really loved his father, all things considered. Hell, I wouldn't be caught singing an AKB48 song in my mother's funeral not even with promises that this would bring her back, so I can assume everything he said until now was true. Besides, some of those titles are kinda badass, specially 'Crownless Prince'. I won't use them though, they sound lame out loud. Instead, I take my time to sigh, and turn back at his furious eyes. "Excuse me to ask, Mr. Decarabia, but since your father, which I assume it's a devil according to your story, knows about Ultraseven, I can assume that devils have at least a certain amount of familiarity with human pop-culture and entertainment, am I correct?"

"…" Nothing from him only a confused grunt. I guess I can continue then.

"I will take what I got and your response as a 'yes'. With that in mind, I shall assume that you're also, at least partially, familiar with some revenge flicks and literature, and I also assume that you see yourself as some of those same characters, right? Well then, now I ask you thus: What will you do once your revenge is done for?" I ask him, taking small steps to the side so I could walk around him a few times. He didn't take his eyes off me, but he seems to be even more confused. "I mean, have you ever watched some samurai movies, or some good old western with Clint Eastwood, some pieces of literature like Nibelungenlied, Carrie or even the original Godfather? Shakespeare? Quentin Tarantino? Suda51? Alan Moore? God of War? The whole story is about an avenger who seeks vengeance against someone or a group of people, and yes, the story builds up to the final climax in which the main character gets his revenge, kills the guy who wronged him, and then his tale ends. Just like that, his tale ends with the revenge because the main character has nothing else to do, and so does the reader or watcher."

"…"

"Now… This is not a video-game, or a novel, or a movie, or a comic book, or a play, or even a fanfiction, Mr. Decarabia. Even if you kill me to exact your revenge, you did say that you spent your entire youth training for this encounter, what will you have by the end of it? Momentous satisfaction? Sure, but then what? Was it worth it, spending your entire being in revenge, knowing that it has to end one day? I don't think so." I say, finally stopping on my tracks to turn around and face him completely. "I sympathize with you, Mr. Decarabia, I really do. Your spirit and will to exact revenge on Azazel is powerful and stylish, but do tell, what did you lose to get here? What did you sacrifice? What a waste of efforts. Maybe if you've chosen a better, more honest way to spend your efforts and will instead of revenge, maybe you don't need to have blood on your hands for your clan to become something of worth yet again. If there's anything sadder than lack of opportunity… Is wasted opportunity."

"…" And then his stare becomes one of pure melancholy. He no longer looks at me, but on the floor, and from standing tall, to then slouching menacingly, he now let himself slip off on the ground, knees supporting his upper part as he contemplates his entire existence. I knew watching those old movies would help me figure it out what to do in case a revenge-nutcase appears in front of me. To be honest, I just want to get out of this situation as soon as possible and without a scratch, but helping him putting his life on check gives me a certain sense of accomplishment, and I can't say that I hate it.

"It is not too late to put your life in check, Mr. Decarabia. Let go of the past and move on with your life to do something more. You said that you have a sister and mother, right? Help them instead of trying to avenge your father whose long gone, and who I am sure would not be happy about how you turned out. I have no moral to tell you anything, so take it with a grain of salt everything, but help yourself. The world is too vast to have such tunnel vision." And I turned around to get myself out of the stadium through the players' exit. What a week, and now this avenger guy appears out of nowhere to try to get my head on a stake, but as anti-climactic as this sounds, at least I could end this entire plotpoint without resorting to violence. Huh, maybe some video-games could adopt that idea, talk the boss to death instead of true ultra-violence. Besides, I have my own other date to worry about, so no time wasting here. "So, I hope you have a good night and think of what we discussed. I might not be the best person to say that to you, but have a small thought about it, put that effort and will into something more productive and maybe your cl-…"

 ***BAM! BAM!***

"Whoa!" And my instincts made me bent my entire upper body to a side, and right on time I dodged two projectiles that would've pierced my body otherwise! Holy crap, that was close! Like a broken watch, I so slowly around to see the source of that attack, and notice now Mr. Decarabia, now facing me with the previous slouch, his eyes staring back at me with that same rage and hatred, and something quite new about him: With the jacket of his suit discarded, his hands have turned into two black, organic gigantic shotgun-like barrels, which were oozing steam from the cylinders. I turn at him with a sweaty face, my face trying to convey rage, surprise and panic. "What was that all about, Mr. Decarabia?! I could've died with that stuff! What are you doing?!"

"You really think you can escape from me that easily?! Do you really think words and aspirational words will make me turn away from my objective in life?! I promised myself that I would kill you for your father killing mine, and that's what I'm going to do!" He says in cries, and from those two cylinders that his hands have turned into, he shots against two bullet-shape spheres! This isn't good! I have to dodge it! I jumped to a random direction, making the bullets instead hit the seat stands, and on contact they exploded in a show of lights! This… Can't be good. He shots again, and again I roll away in order to escape from the balls of destruction! "Die, you spawn of Azazel! Face the grief and hopelessness of death as you witness what my father felt by the hands of the leader of the Watchers! Feel despair, feel fear, feel darkness, and DIE!"

"Wait, wait! Please stop, Mr. Decarabia! I am sure we talk about this whole aff-…!" And I got careless: The moment I tried to turn to his as I run for my life in order to snap him out of his trance, I didn't notice the players' stand right in front of me, and in a careless move, I came down crashing down into it, falling on my front on that little place where players gather. I tried to get up, but it was too late. A shower of bullets came down raining on me! "Oh, that's just…!"

 ***BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM! BAM!***

"Die! Die and pay for the sins of your father, Kokuto Kurokami! Face the punishment of your progenitor's errors and face me so I can see the light leave your pathetic eyes! FACE ME AND CHARGE AGAINST YOUR DESTINY, KOKUTO KUROKAMI!"

…

…

All I wanted to do today was to see a **Tiger vs. Dragon** match…

… But at least I'm not the only one disappointed, right?

 ***TAC!***

 ***ZOOOOOM!***

"What the…?!" ***BAK!*** "GYAAAAAAAAAH~…!"

"I seriously doubt that I can even begin to understand the feud between Azazel and your clan, and like I said before, I give you all the condolences that I can…" And then, from the destruction of the players' stand, I emerge like one of those badasses from an action move, cracking a few articulations, Tama resting right by my side, and on my hands, a genuine baseball bat on one hand and a bucket of baseballs on another. I just hit him with a right one on his eye and as expected, I was able to draw a bit of blood from a wound there. Not my best performance, but at least I can dent a bit of his defenses. "… But if you want to face your destiny and walk the dark path of revenge, who am I to say otherwise? Besides… I didn't tell earlier, but I'm more of a Heisei era Ultraman than an Showa Era Ultraman! Especially Ultraman Tiga, that one was way cooler, not to mention to be the first Ultraman capable of changing forms. And just like that, I see that you can only see into the past, never into the Future, like Ultraman Zero."

"Cursed be you… Crownless prince of the Grigori… Spawn of the Arrogance of God, Azazel!" He says, trying to stand up with his eye still bleeding, but after a while, the wound in it just vanished as the blood around it dried in an instant as well. Maybe another devilish ability? Instead, his hands turned from guns into blades, large, long, sharp black organic blades where his hands used to be. This is getting too dangerous even for me, but like I said, I shall face the situation at hand. I'm Kokuto Kurokami, the man who always has luck by his side, and I won't lose, not here, not now, not ever. " **KOKUTO KUROKAMI** …!"

"Yes, I'm Kokuto Kurokami, The man who always has luck by his side! No matter the place, no matter the situation, I shall always come on top and regain my peaceful life I so long yearn for! And no one, be human, devil, angel or fallen angel, would tell me what to do!" I say doing a pose and putting both my jacket and purse away, cracking my neck a few times and preparing for another clash. A direct confrontation, this is the first time for me but even so, if I believe in myself and in Tama's ability, I can come up victorious, as always.

"Decarabia's special ability: Morphing skin – Blade Mode!" The says, crossing both his hand-blades on an X in front of his chest as he let out a ferocious breath as we face each other, me armed with a baseball bat and a few play balls, and him with his hand-blades which I can sense from here are really dangerous. ***DRIP! DRIP!*** , I feel a few cold drops fall onto me, and look up to the dark sky, seeing small lines of light falling from the sky. It started to rain, a very heavy rain, setting up the mood for our encounter. " **Deathmatch Decarabia** , son of **Deathmetal Decarabia** , this is the name of your executioner, Kokuto Kurokami! Remember it, and tell the grim reaper in the afterlife who send you!"

"The wheel of fate is turning. Heaven or hell…" I say under my breath, picking one game ball and testing its weight on my hands and against the rain. We cross eyes one more time, and the match is settled between us, the disgraced heir of the Decarabia, whatever the hell that means, and me, the Crownless Prince of the Grigori. And last but not least, the battle between a Showa-era Fan and a Heisei-era Ultraman fan. I smile, and clenched the ball in my hand. "… Let's rock!"

 **[If your heart is wavering, then do not Shoot, Kokuto. Find the path that you think is the truth, then shoot with your luck's content.]**

 **[Now, shoot with your luck's content!]**


	11. Carnival Carnage

**A new chapter for you all! Hello there! This chapter I try my first conventional fight scene! I hope it went all and, despite what might appear from Kokuto, I really like writing this chapter! The thing is... This is my first fight scene, and I had a bit of difficulty turning those into words, so it might not end up as one would expect but... I tried my best I hope it ended good! As alwayddon't forget to R &R and I see you all in the next chapter!**

 **DxD and it's characters belong to Ishibumi Ichiei and its respective magazines. The OC's are mine, though.**

* * *

 _Deathmatch Decarabia…_

 _He is everything that I am not. He has everything that I don't: A goal in life, an objective to hold up to, something to pursue, something to get prepare and to strive for, honing his own abilities and resources in order to reach a goal which is much bigger than he might be. Me? I'm just a lazy, depressed, useless, greedy and perverted highschool student with no dreams for the future, nor anything or anywhere to drive myself to. Even now, when we're facing each other, he possesses that passion, that flame inside of him, that burns with the intensity of a thousand suns, carrying on his back the dreams, hopes and weights of his whole clan, having suffered since early age by the actions of my Father, the arrogance of God and the governor general of the fallen angels Azazel, yet strife without hesitation for a brighter future, whereas a lesser man such as myself would have long break from the pressure._

 _He is indeed a man of worth, against me, someone with no goals or desires, being spoiled rotten since I was a baby and having no worries or shortages ever since. No efforts, no sacrifices, no losses, I am someone blessed, against him, someone who had to fight since birth in order to survive…_

 _I ask… Am I even allowed to fight him after all of this? Am I even worthy to defend myself against his own resolve and passion? Between us, he's more of a man than I will ever be, and for all that he has endured and suffered, I am nothing, a worthless person who knows no defeat, hardship or sorrow; a spoiled brat who was born on a golden crib, he laughs with no worries for tomorrow. He has all the rights to crush me between his powerful hands and prove that his hard work, resistance against fate and pain were not for naught, and that he could bring himself up with his own hands as a true man among men, the pinnacle of power, the one who should bring back his clan's former glory._

 _And for that, I would not even be mad about my death by his hands, I would gladly be killed by him, knowing that he is the bigger man between us, and that he deserves at least that satisfaction as a true fighter…_

 _If this was a manga or something. Unfortunately for him, this is not a manga, but real life, and in real life, nobody cares about your suffering, your sorrows, your feelings or anything, all that the world cares about… Is results!_

 _Me, being less worthy than him for being born in a golden crib? Him, having any right to defeat me just because he suffered the most and trained every day in his life? Who decided this? Irrelevant, ridiculous, inconceivable; the only thing that should decide who should win and who should lose is the result of this match. And if he truly believes that he has a worthier life than me just because he suffered more and he has any right to kill me just because of my father, he's a bigger idiot than I thought!_

 _I won't die. I'm Kokuto Kurokami, the man who always has luck by his side, and I'll kick his ass no matter how much he has suffered. I don't care, I don't mind, in this world… Only the results remain!_

* * *

"The wheel of fate is turning, heaven or hell. Let's rock!" I said, clenching the baseball ball in my hands and throwing it at high speed against the devil coming in my direction, who has black blades for hands now. I aimed right in the middle of his eyes, and bullseye it hit! His head tilted a bit on the back, and even so he continued to run towards me, so I continued to throw against him! I have balls here for days, so I can continue throwing them until he gets too close! "Take that! And that! And those! I have balls for days, Mr. Decarabia! So come and get me!"

"KUROKAMI…!" He roars at me while having his face and body being covered in balls in high velocity, yet he doesn't stop at all! One after another after another, I throw balls at him but he doesn't even try to defend himself, he just runs forward, no fear or dread, just hatred in his eyes, as the rain above us doesn't stop. In the end, he came too close for any ball to have any effect on him, so I throw the last one to a random direction and run in his direction, ready to face my own fate. He grunts at me. "YES! COME AND FACE YOUR OWN FATE, KOKUTO KUROKAMI! COME AND FACE ME, AND PAY FOR THE SINS OF YOUR FATHER!"

"Bring it on, then!" I said back, and then we clashed. He came like a bull on me, blade arms ready to cut me into pieces, but before he could do any damage against me, instead I reached for his chest and locked my arms right under the line of his arms, as if I'm clutching him on a bear hug! Holy crap, he's firm like a stone wall! He takes a few steps back in surprise, but then blinks and his deadly stare returns.

"Oh, was that supposed to harm me?! Bad move, Crownless prince!" He screams right on my ears and from here I can see him lifting his arms to deal a fatal blow on top of me. Fast, I gotta act fast like this! "This is your end, Kurokami!"

"Kurokami's special technique...!" But before he could do anything else again, I was faster and arched my back backwards, using his own muscles and weight to help me do such. The sudden movement and lack of balance made him stop on his tracks, and before he knew it, I lifted him from the ground, made him transverse the an entire arc as I arched my back more and more, until I hit his head on the floor, my back forming a complete arc to the ground. His entire body trembles with the clash, and so I let go of him, making his whole body hit the ground. "… **NIGHTFALL SUPLEX**!"

By the way, that's just a normal _front Suplex_ , but mom did teach me such with that name.

"You… You bastard…" He curses under his breath, trying to stand up, but before he could do so, I picked the baseball bat and hit him right on the right side of his head, making him wail in agony and lose balance yet again, falling on the ground yet again! Once he was again on the floor, I stood up and continue to hit him on the arms, head and chest with the bat with all I've got! "GYAAAAAH! FUCK YOU, KUROKAMI…!"

"My bad **! *WHACK!*** My bad **! *WHACK!*** I'm not usually a violent person **! *WHACK!*** But the idea of dying does not sit well with me! ***WHACK!*** So it's either you or m-…!" I was about to hit him one more time, but in a flash, I saw a line of light, and so I jumped back as I could. I landed not very far from Mr. Decarabia, but when I blinked back at my weapon, I notice that he just sliced the bat in half! Not just that, in another second, ***SLASH!** *, a shallow yet large wound appeared on my arm! Dangerous, so dangerous. So that's a real fight, not a conflict of ideologies, not a battle of wits, but a real struggle for survival. I'm getting a bit scared myself… Rain, or cold sweat? I don't know anymore. Mr. Decarabia stands from his previous fallen state, and cleans off the blood and rain falling on his face, spitting a tooth from his mouth. We face each other yet again, and he let out an animalistic growl, teeth showing, while I blow steam out of my mouth, discarding the sliced baseball bat and picking another that flew on my direction, supporting it on my shoulder.

"Like father, like son… A coward, a trickster, with no power to back himself, so decides to use cheap misdirection and hide behind names in order to spread your venom. Pathetic, truly pathetic…" He claims, sharpening his blades onto each other, flashes and sparks flying everywhere every time the sword-hands would pass onto each other. Look who's talking, you're the one who has a father killed by that same pathetic fallen angel. Of course, I won't say that out loud, that would be insensitive. "You have no idea what I've been through, to sharpen my skills and abilities for this day, the day which I would avenge my father. Truly, bringing the demise of a weakling coward like you will be considered a shame for the name of my clan, but to bring despair to Azazel and fear to the fallen angels… No words can describe my joy for the anticipation of this."

"Well, you shouldn't." I talk back, taking a few steps sideways so I could circle around him with care, bat still supported on my shoulder and rain falling on me. I blow my nose a few times to get rid of the humidity, and he frown his brows. "My death won't bring your father back, nor instantly solve any of your problems, or save your clan from falling apart even further. If you're truly someone worthier than me, then you should've known that from the start. In the end, after the thrill is gone, you'll only have blood on your hands, and the hollowness of your life losing all meaning."

"SHUT UP! SHUT UP AND DIE!" He screams at the top of his lungs, again reaching for me with his arm-blades as he slashes them in my direction much more like a berserker would. He's fast, but I can see his pattern in his moves. I instead opted to retreat, running on my back so I can have my distance from him without taking my eyes off his weapons. Keep a calm heart and locked mind, Kokuto. If your heart is wavering, don't act, only react, find the path you think is right and act as your heart contents. Only that way you'll find the truth.

"I get it, I get it! You loved your father, you idolized him, you looked up to him, and when he died, you and your family lost everything! That's not hard to follow, but what I don't get it is why you want revenge, Mr. Decarabia!" I retorted to the berserker while dodging and escaping from the grasps of his blade, left, right, left right, diagonal here and there. He's predictable and now slower, but even so, he cut a few ones on me. "Your anger, your frustration, you think they're helping you in a path for a greater future, but instead you're letting those emotions distort your priorities and ruin your life! Killing a lowlife scum like me won't solve anything! If you think killing solves anything at all, then you're the stupid and unworthy one!"

"BASTARD! HOW DARE YOU!" And I could see that a pair of bat-like wings spontaneously sprouts from his back, and then he jumps into the air, reaching a height that I didn't think it was possible! In midair, suddenly his arm-blades morph yet again, taking the shape of gigantic spiky black spheres, and turn his body to my direction still on the floor! He lifts both his arms and then descend them upon the ground. "Decarabia's special ability: Morphing skin – MORNINGSTAR MODE!"

"Damn it, I have to…!" Too late. I couldn't even react in time, his hands which were now shaped like spiky balls clashed on the ground and created a massive shockwave across the baseball field, sending me flying into the sky and all over the place! I flipped, I turned, I landed on my feet and looked forward to see him at the ground zero of that impact explosion, a good foot or two into the field. Another transformation, and that one seems that it'll leave a mark if it hits. Even so, I turn back at him, taking a deep breath to get rid of the water on my face. "I don't know about you at all, but I'll say you this: no matter how mad you are at me, or how bad you want me dead, I won't kill you. Throw me everything, your hatred, your anger, unleash all of your emotions onto me as you want, I refuse to end your life myself. Whatever you say, you won't kill me, and I won't kill you."

"I will gorge in the sensation of your demise until I vomit…" He simply responds, and with no signal beforehand, he lifted one of his hands and hit the floor once again, the impact of such lifting him on the air yet again in my direction. Like a shooting star on a stormy night, he comes down on me at high speed, but this time, I take a deep breath, and stay on my ground as he comes closer to me. Bat at hand, aim right and then strike! "I WILL HAVE MY REVENGE!"

 ***DOOOOOOOON!***

"Howdy-how!" And again his attack caused a shockwave to ripple all over the baseball field and tremble the whole stadium, but this time I jumped right on time, avoiding the impact at all. Instead, I backed a few steps back and pushed myself forward as he regains his senses after the shock. Too late! I pulled the baseball bat all the way to my back and in one smooth move hit him again on the side of his own face! The impact and recoil were too much even for me or the bat, so I let go of my weapon, which literally broke into two pieces. Even so, I did some damage on him, deforming his skull a little and opening a bloody wound on his face! No time to rest, using the recoil yet again, I begin to run away from him to reach myself another weapon! "For an Ultraseven fan, you have lot of Tiga's and Dyna's weaknesses! You're too slow on Power Type and too predictable on Sky type! How lame~! Try multi type and that might actually work!"

"You… Bastard… I won't allow… Anyone to… BADMOUTH DAN MOROBOSHI OR ULTRASEVEN!" He stands tall and shakes his head to get himself off the daze and the blood on his face, and morphing his hands again into blades, he resumed his pursue on me, running in circles with me around the baseball field and slashing his blades in the air as I pick another baseball bat and ball. I jump, then slide my feet across the humid grass, rippling the puddles under the rain, and then turn to him.

"This is your last chance, Mr. Decarabia. Turn around and rethink your choices in life, forget this destructive path towards revenge and try to see the light of another day before it's too late, and you gargle and drown on the darkness of your own heart." Why am I being so poetic in the middle of a battle? Maybe the romance of this situation, being the bad guy of a revenge story, is getting the best out of me and my lyrical spirit. Whatever, I threw the ball into the air and prepared myself to hit it with the baseball bat, but not before taking a deep breath and turning at him one last time. "Are you sure you want to trail on this path? Nothing but sorrow and sadness awaits thee, and any satisfaction but death. Give me your answer, and I shall deliver the proper response!"

He says nothing, only roars, and that's enough of an answer for me. I sigh, losing no time to aim instead at the ball and, in another quick and smooth move, lift the curtain of drops a bit in order to cut the air with my baseball bat and hit the ball, making it fly away in high speed! Only… It didn't go to Mr. Decarabia's direction! Instead, the ball flew away from the field and into the seat rows, where it hit one and flew over to another direction. That… Wasn't exactly what I was planning… At all. Oh crap...

"Out of tactics? Then die!" And I return my stare back at the alarmingly close Mr. Decarabia, running to me like a train out of control! Once he was close enough from me, he frowns and jumps into the air, both his hand-blades lifted so that he could unleash a fury of slashes against me! I turned around and tried to step away from his reach, but he was already too close! No matter what direction I choose, He'll slice me into pieces no doubt! Out of tactics indeed, so it's time for my Trump card! I summon Tama yet again! "Your Sacred Gear won't help you now, Crownless prince! Face your destiny and die!"

"You're the one who will face your own fate, Mr. Decarabia!" I exclaim back with a finger in the air. He lifts both his arms and ready himself to slash me into pieces! This is it! Tama, if you have any more ideas but your sleeve, you better show it now! "Oh, goddamnit!"

"Now DIEEEEEEE…!"

 ***ZOOOM!***

 ***BAK!***

"…!"

"…!"

And it was in just a second. A small, minimal second, a span between a moment or two, but as if the world was in slow motion, I saw it all happen right in front of my eyes: The moment Mr. Decarabia descended his blades against me in order to finish me off, that baseball ball that I hit previously came out of nowhere and in an instant it hit him right on the side of one of his blades, forcing his left arm to slightly turn to the right, right on top of his right hand! He tried to correct his stance, but it was too late: because of that ball coming out of nowhere and hitting one of his blades, one hand topped the other, and then ***SLASH!*** , his left hand-blade ended up cutting off his own right hand-blade!

"What the… GWAAAAAAAAAAH~…!" He wailed in pain and surprise, losing his balance in midair as his mutilated hand-blade rolled in my direction and landed right next to me, sticking on the ground like some kind of sword on the rock. Mr. Decarabia on the other hand fell on the ground by the other side and rolled a good mile or two away from where I am, still screaming, still crying, his now normal left hand holding the stump on his right arm for dear life. "My Arm…! _MY ARM_ …! **GWAAAAAAAAAAH** …!"

"L-L- **Lucky~** **⋆…** " I murmur under my breath, letting out a sigh of deep relief and graditute for the heavens for that spark of good luck that came out of nowhere. Even I, Kokuto Kurokami, the man who always has luck by his side, can't believe how this worked out! I take a look to the side, and notice that the black flash that was covering the blade that was once Mr. Decarabia's right hand was melting away, leaving only the bones and the blades made out of them, shaping itself like a calcium sword. I turned to the other side, Mr. Decarabia was still wailing and rolling in pain holding his bloody stub, and stood up while unsticking the boney blade from the ground. Mohs scale of hardness, only a diamond can dent another diamond! I dragged myself to his direction as he tries to stand up, still holding to his wound. I'm getting really sick tired of this dude. "Is this how you envisioned your revenge, Mr. Decarabia?! Rolling on the floor in pain, missing a limb while I stand here, feeling pity of you?! I could be back home watching my animes and series or reading this week's Jump, but you had to have a grudge against my old man and try to play the edgy anti-hero avenger trying to pick a fight with someone like me! I hope you're happy for this outcome, I really do! Because, for me, this has been nothing but A SHITSHOW!"

"Shut up… You don't… Have any right to tell me what to do…" In between huffs and groans of pain, Mr. Decarabia stands up and turns his direction towards me. I'm really starting to lose all sympathy for this guy, and from here I can see him morph his hand into a blade yet again… I turn to myself, and I notice a rip on my Armani Exchange shirt. Oh great, I'll have to explain that later to mom, I so feel like crying right now. "So what that you ripped my arm off? One hand is all I need to defeat y-…!"

"Shut up! Just… SHUT UP! I don't want to hear any more of your stupid, selfish, cliché-filled, self-righteous backstory or boasts that will end up in naught! You just lost your arm, you GODDAMN sanctimonious! That's a red flag showing how vacant your head is! I WAS HAVING A PRETTY GOOD DAY UNTIL YOU SHOWED UP WITH NOTHING BUT COMTEMPT, HATRED AND REVENGE, SO DON'T THINK YOU HAVE ANY RIGHT TO TELL ME WHAT TO DO! HNNNNNG~…!" I growled to no one in particular, holding my head as tears of frustration escapes my eyes and losing them in the rain. Mr. Decarabia stops on his tracks on my tantrum, and I'm almost out of breath, taking deep but short gasps of air since I just can't control this meltdown. I'm crying, oh my God, I'm crying~! Why does this keep happening to me~! It's not fair, it's just not fair~! "Look, we're both clearly not enjoying this whole thing! I'm hurt and with my Armani Exchange ruined, and you just lost an arm and is now rolling on the ground crying! I'm trying to be nice, I'm really trying, but you're not making this any easy! So I'll tell you this one more time: withdraw, go away. Go bother someone else, go reconstruct your clan, go jerk off to porn or something, anything! Just leave me alone and go do something productive with your time, because if you're looking for revenge on someone like me, you clearly have nothing better to do with it!"

"DAMN YOOOOOOOOU…!" He screams at the top of his lungs and morphing his hand from a blade to that shotgun-gun like black barrel, and with that he started to shower me with those same energy bullets. This again?! Whatever, I lifted his previously-hand-now-boney-sword and started to slap those away! They were fast but the distance between us made it easier to see their trajectory. It's a good thing that I watched so many Samurai movies, and as such my skills on the blade are really top-notch! In the end I was able to defend myself against all of his projectiles, yet my arm hurts a lot. I'm not used to do that much movement, I'll need ice for that later. In turn my eyes at him one more time, and instead of screams, he now eyes me with a serious frown. Suddenly, my own animosity with this whole situation also vanishes, and I adopt that same frown. "Tell me, Spawn of the leader of the Watchers, son of the Governor General of the Fallen angels and the Grigori, Kokuto Kurokami, do you think it's fair? Losing everything you ever loved or cared about, seeing your world ruin right in front of your eyes, everything you ever believed, trusted or was confident about, crushed? And having no power to stop this? Do you think it's fair to be born in this world in such miserable, disgusting, unlucky state, while you, who's related to the man who caused all of this, lives happily without a care in the world?! Do you think it's fair?!"

"I don't know, I don't care. I sympathize with you, but your backstory does not give you any right to be an asshole or throw a tantrum on me! The world is unfair, so you either suck it up and run along with it or become some edgy, self-righteous twat who accomplishes nothing to anyone!" I said, dragging myself to him as tears start to sprout from his dark eyes, but I'm already on the level that I don't care anymore about his cause. He turns his barrel again into a sword, and I lift his severed hand-blade onto my shoulder. "I can sympathize, but doesn't mean I care. If you want me to feel pity of you, congratulations, I feel like trash for kicking you around! But I don't care, I've never cared, for what you've been through! Stop being a crybaby about things not going your way and start behaving like an adult!"

"You're so selfish… Nothing less from a fallen angel…"

"Bitch, you're the avenger guy! If there's anyone selfish, self-righteous or with tunnel-vision here, it's you! YOU! YOU, YOU AND YOU!"

"ENOUGH!" And he screamed yet again, jumping into my direction and lifting his blade to use it again against me. What the hell, I don't care about anything anymore, whatever happens, happens! I lift my own hand and sword against him and aim right on a spot! I promised myself that I won't kill him, and I'm gonna keep it! Even so, doesn't mean I'll dent a few ones on his dense skull! He's still in midair, and suddenly some kind of red aura begins to leak from him! "Decarabia's special ability: Blade Mode – BASTARD SWORD!"

"Wait, what…?" And out of the sudden, his blade increased in size tenfold, making it twice as big as him! Not just that, the blade went from black to a dark shade of crimson, and the red aura around it emanating a sensation that I can only describe with one word: Death… Like that is fair! "Y'know what?! Whatever! I am Kokuto Kurokami, the man who always has luck by his side! You want to scream stupid names for attacks, like some kind of anime character?! Well, I can do that stuff too! KUROKAMI SPECIAL **SSSS** -TECHNIQUE: **S** trawberry **S** hortcake **S** urprise…!"

"DIE, CROWNLESS PRINCE…!"

"… **S** LASH!"

 ***ZOOM!***

 ***ZOOM!***

 ***SLASH!***

…

…

" **Lucky~** **⋆.** " And it was over. I don't know how or why it happened, but luck has sided yet again with I, Kokuto Kurokami: despite the difference in size or maybe because of it, I was able to cut down the link between Mr. Decarabia and his arm-blade, and much more like a hot knife on butter, I cut off his other hand and sword, which landed on one side while the devil landed on the other. Unfortunately, the recoil was too much for me, letting me go of my improvised weapon and sliding away to again stick on the floor. I need to start lifting some or else those fights will start wrecking me. Now, what to do, what to do? I turn around to see my opponent again crawling all over the floor, much more like a legless cockroach. Why do I feel bad? He's trying to kill me, but I don't feel anything but pity for him. I hate doing this, I hate doing all of this, but at least I can say this is over now. I pick my weapon yet again from the floor, and aim it at him. " _The weight of this sad time we must obey… Speak what we feel, not what we ought to say… The oldest hath borne most. We that are still Young… Shall never see so much, nor live so long_. And that's, by the most part, mostly okay by me. Do you understand, Mr. Decarabia? This is a match without winners. I have no satisfaction in here or in this fight, just like a guy on business in the economy class on a flight, having to deal with snorty kids, lousy food and low-resolution movies on a miniscule screen just to go on with my day. Don't you think I have better things to do than fight someone who has a grudge against my old man?! Seriously, you supernatural creatures must have nothing to do with your time if revenge sounds like a productive activity!"

"Why… Why… How can you be…" He stands himself on his knees under the rain, blood practically gushing out of his wounds like a fountain, but by the look on his face he doesn't look like he wants to give up! Oh my God, why can't he just stay down! STAY DOWN! "Kurokami…!"

"AH, _SHUT UP_!"

 ***ZOOM!***

 ***STAB!***

"Gh…!" And then I had enough! I lost no time and just threw that bone sword to his direction, cutting all the drops of rain across us until it reached a part of his abdomen and then Stab!, it craved itself right on the middle of his chest! It took him a while to notice what just happened, but then he spat blood, looked down on the bleeding wound on his chest, his eyes widened, and he let out a wail of pain. "GYAAAAAAAAAAH~…!"

"Y'know what?! Screw this, I'm out of here! You just completely ruined the romance of this whole chapter, and I might be romantic guy, but I have standards for those kinds of things! So Godspeed, or devilspeed, whatever." And that's enough for me today! This week, everything blows, and my patience was already running thin when I accepted coming here for something to happen, and the moment he refuses the stay down it's the moment I draw the line here! I'm going home. I made sure that I wouldn't hit any vital organ or artery, so I'm sure that that won't kill him at all! I turned around and decided to walk away from this bloody place! "Go patch up those wounds and forget about me! I was careful to hit no important organs or stuff, but unless you go see some treatment, you'll die or whatever! I-I don't care anymore! I just don't care! Go away and leave me alone!"

"W-Wait! Damned be you, Kokuto Kurokami!" And he's still cursing! Oh my God, why just he give up or something?! I'm really this close of wanting to end his life! I don't even bother to look back at him, I'll just pretend that I'm not even hearing. "WAIT, KUROKAMI! WE ARE NOT OVER THIS YET! COME BACK! COME BACK AND FACE MEEEEEEEEE…!"

Let it go, let it go, Kokuto… There's a limit how much of an idiot a person can be! He'll eventually realize that he'll bleed to death if he doesn't treat those wounds of his, and he'll get away without even remembering your name. With no arms, a wound that big and crushed feet, there's no way of him to have a trump card up his sleeve or something…

 ***DOOOOOON!***

"…?!" An immense flash of light coming from my back, and the sound of thunder ringing on my ears, which came right behind me. The jump scare made me turn around in a rapid move to notice that from where Mr. Decarabia previously were, I saw a dense, black smoke emanating a foul aura and even fouler scent, ascending into the skies into a dark spiral. From it, a dark tornado took place, engulfing everything in blackness from within and withering all the green and lights into the stadium. In the end, all that remained was a massive cloud above me, which little by little started to take shape and color, from black to grey, to then crimson and a myriad of other pallets, until it finally took its final form…

The form… Of a giant, silly-looking parade float in the shape of a caricatured Mr. Decarabia, with big silly eyes, a giant bloated nose and big head and swollen small limbs and belly.

"DECARABIA SPECIAL ABILITY: ULTIMATE MORPH – CARNIVAL CARNAGE!" It spoke, it spoke in a nasally, high-pitchy voice, while floated idly on the air. "HOW ABOUT THIS?! TREMBLE IN THE FACE OF TRUE POWER OF THE DECARABIA! DIE WITH THIS FACE INPRINTED IN YOUR MEMORY, AND ONCE IN HELL, SAY TO THE GRIM REAPER THAT DEATHMATCH DECARABIA WAS THE ONE WHO SENT YOU THERE!"

…

…

…

 **AAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH…!**

 **WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON ANYMORE?!**

 **Is this how an avenger was supposed to look?! Is this the logical conclusion someone fueled only by revenge and hatred can reach?! A giant parade float which is nothing more than a caricature of itself?! IS THIS WHAT PEOPLE THINK IS ROMANTIC IN REVENGE?! Throwing every ounce, every particle of decency, ridicule and shame in order to reach a single, tunnel-vision goal?! This is… This is right, it's just not right. Shakespeare, Tarantino, Stan Lee, none of them can see the true ugliness of revenge. This… This monstrosity just exemplifies how unromantic those stories really are. This… Thing, this ugly thing! It's so horrendous, so messed-up, so irredeemably screwed, it goes back all the way in being beautiful! It's ridiculous! It's like an art piece! This stuff belongs in a museum! It exemplifies this whole revenge thing perfectly! It doesn't make any sense, but that's it! Just like in Dadaism, which makes no sense on itself! What a joke! WHAT A JOKE! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH! LOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOL! AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH…!**

 **AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!**

 **AHAHAHAHAHAH…**

 **Ahahahah…**

 **Ahahah…**

 **Hahah…**

 **Hah…**

 **…**

 ***SIGH** *

"Is this what your vengeance and pride made you do, Mr. Decarabia? To strip yourself from all sense of shame, honor or decency in order to fight little old me? I gotta say, I'm a bit sad for that, I really am. If you wanted to bring me misery, then congratulations, you succeeded, although I doubt the way you wanted." I said with a heavy sigh, picking the boney sword that used to be his left hand-sword and turned to the silly parade float above the stadium. I sniff a little, dry up the tears that has been running down my cheeks, and turned the sword to him, who could only mutter incomprehensible words from his ever-smiling plastic mouth. "Okay then, Mr. Decarabia. I hope you're ready for this. Let's finish this, once and for all. For all of your hatred and thirst for revenge, I offer you some peace of mind and pity. Now, to the garden of madness!"

The caricatured monster that I refuse to acknowledge as the previous Mr. Decarabia only let out a deranged laugh, and lifted one of its massive stubby hands on my direction, as I picked the sword with my two hands and prepared myself to the upcoming clash! The wheel of fate just can't stop turning, isn't it? Oh well, heaven or hell, let's end this! Let's rock!

"Okay then… Here I come, MR. DECARABIA!"

"BRING IT ON, KUROKAMI…!"

 ***TING!***

"What the…?" But before I could finally clash with the avenger and face my fate, I saw a small glimpse of light coming from the skies above. Starlight in the middle of a storm such as this?! However, I noticed that little spark of light was getting closer and closer towards us, until it landed right in the middle of the stadium, piercing through the giant parade float that was covering it like it was nothing! For a second, nothing, but then, ***SLASH!** *, Mr. Decarabia's silly form was cut in half, and then exploded in a show of lights and black mist!

In the end, Mr. Decarabia, thankfully in his starter form, started to fall from the sky, away from the darkness his most shameful form left. Before he could clash and become pavement paste, however, someone caught him on its arms, avoiding a messy landing. I couldn't see too clearly because of the mist, but little by little, I could see a silhouette of a tall young man, and when everything was clear, I could see clearly who it was: **Yuuto Kiba** , the prince charming of Kuoh academy, holding Mr. Decarabia on his arms and a cool-looking sword stuck on the ground next to him.

"So I was right, there was a devil around here causing some ruckus. Lord Decarabia, what are you doing in the human world?" He asks calmly to the man on his arms, but as expected, Mr. Decarabia was unconscious, so no reply. He let out a small chuckle to himself, then turned to me with a smile. No doubt now, it's really the pretty boy of Kuoh academy, Yuuto Kiba. "And how about you, Kurokami? What are you doing here?"

"I was… Just wanting to… See a baseball game?" I let out that excuse(well, it isn't inaccurate, at least), while taking small steps backwards, letting go of my bone sword and blinking a few times to make sure I wasn't mistaking him from anyone else. Nope, he's Yuuto Kiba alright. Unfortunately, this revelation only raises more questions, and I honestly doubt I want answers for those. Instead, I try to back away as far as I want. Why does those things keep happening to me? I sigh. "How about you? What are you doing here, Kiba, if you don't mind me asking?"

"My master said she sensed something in this direction, a massive amount of demonic power that wasn't supposed to be here in the first place, and asked me to inspect. I'm surprised that it was no other than… Someone of name. I assume you know what I'm talking about, right?" He says.

"Does that mean you're a devil as well, Kiba?" I decided to reply with another question, and his response was a silent nod. Indeed, I just wanted to confirm this, and I hit a jackpot. It seems that Kuoh academy is the place to attract freaks and weirdos, and I'm not (just) talking about the perverted trio. I frown at him. "Figures, and I assume that you know who and what I am, right?"

He nods again. I sigh.

"So, what are you going to do? I… Seriously don't want to fight you. I'm already at bad shape after dealing with your friend over there, which was the one who invited me to fight me may I remind you!, and I'm already with a few series and anime stuck on my blu-ray, so…" I adopt a combat pose and stepped a few times back, just in case. "… If you want to go, I can go. I don't want to, but if you want, I won't have any choice then. Just… Forget about me when It's all over, okay?"

"No, I don't need to battle you, Kurokami." He simply says with another smile and a nod. This sentence made me lower my stance a little. I know I shouldn't let my guard down, but he sounds so calm and sincere with those words, must be the pretty boy charm. Instead, Kiba simply adjusted Mr. Decarabia on his arms and turned around to start walking away from here. "My master only said to see what was causing that entire ruckus here at Kuoh stadium. Since I have the reason and the cause, my mission here is finished. Don't worry, I won't tell what happened here or who I found, so don't worry."

"Huh… Thanks." I said. So Mr. Pretty-boy is more than just appearances, it seems. No wonder half of the female Kuoh population is so into him. Typical light novel protagonist guy, not to mention a devil. Since he's not a member of the student council and wasn't there to reveal himself, I can assume that his 'master' ain't president Sona, which reminds me. "But, hey Kiba. When you say 'master', of whom you're talking about?"

"…" He then stops dead-on on his track, and there was a moment of silence between us, making me tilt my head to a side in a question mark. Suddenly, he turns his face around to look back at me, but something caught me by surprise: he was frowning, his eyes showing a bloodthirst and killing intent even more intense than Mr. Deacarabia's, making me back a few steps. He's… He's dangerous, really dangerous. I'm cold-sweating. Before I could say anything, he says something: "Kurokami, I recommend that, if you want me to not see you as my enemy, you don't ask the identity of my master if you don't know it already. There is a fine line separating peace and war against devils such as myself and fallen angels, so if you really don't want to get involved as you said, you will politely back away and avoid such questions. Otherwise, I won't be able to trust you anymore, and you'll be my enemy. Is that clear?"

"Sure, no problem. Sorry for that." I clap my hands and formed that half-assed apology to him. Yeah, he's right, I have no reason to want to get involved into this whole supernatural stuff, I just want to spend the rest of the spring of my youth in peace. I assume that he doesn't want his identity as devil to be found out as well? That's okay by me too. "I'll pretend that nothing happened here today, too. No problem on my end, Kiba. You go do your stuff, and if fate brings us together again, well, until then I won't say or do a thing that you might not like. No problem."

"I'm glad to hear that, Kurokami. I believe in you. And so, I bid you goodbye." And then the heavy aura around was lift, and his frown turned into a smile, his typical pretty boy smile. And so, with no more to say, he turned around once more with Mr. Decarabia on his arms, and in a second, he vanishes without a trace, leaving me alone in the stadium…

The pouring rain, the dark light from the once-functional highlights, the dead grass on the stadium, and in the middle of all of this, here I am, Kokuto Kurokami, the man blessed with good luck, but doesn't feel that way at all. I sigh, so it's just not the girls in my school that might possibly be devil queens or princesses, but the guys too, and even if that's not the case, apparently some others devils and supernatural creatures have a knack to pick with my fallen angel father, and might target me in the middle. This whole story is already making my head turn a few times, and just thinking about it is giving me a headache. How many enemies does Azazel have, and how many of them still have a grudge on him? Scrap that, who still to recruit me into their crew just because of my fallen angel blood and Sacred Gear? I don't know, I just don't know…

…

And I shouldn't care, either.

Yeah, I'm Kokuto Kurokami, the man who always has luck by his side. I shouldn't be worrying what people think or want from me, the only thing that matters is what I have, what I want, and how I can make things work with those two. When I have Tama by my side, I can do anything, so it doesn't matter at all, I'll be always at the top. This is my luck, this is my life, this is my fate. I should just go home, take a bath, lay in my bed and forget what just happened today and anticipate my date with my not!girlfriend this weekend, like I always do. I should do just that.

Still, there is still one thing I must do here before I go. I look around a little bit, and finally found what I was looking for: the microphone of the stadium. I picked from the ground, dusted it off and tapped the head a few times to see if it was still working. It was, fortunately. I picked then the holder, placed on the pitcher's mound, and coughed a few times.

" _Hello, hello, testing, testing, 1 2 3, 1 2 3_?" I tested the Microphone a few times and noticed that it still worked. With that out of the way, took a deep breath, and started to speak on it: " _Mr. Deathmetal Decarabia, are you hearing this? I hope you are. I'm sorry that your son wasn't able to settle his revenge and make your soul rest in peace, but I want to say something for you instead: I'm sorry_."

Pause. As expected, no answer.

 _"I don't know you, but I can assume that you were a very good man… Devil, a good husband and a good dad. And even if it was a biased look from your son, at least it means that you were good for someone, and that's something I admire. No matter the circumstances, if someone is dear like that for someone, anyone, they don't deserve to die, at all. So I'm sorry for what my father did to you, and I hope that those words can reach you wherever you are. If there's an afterlife for your race, I hope you're happy and peaceful there. At least… Unlike Azazel, you can say you were a good father."_

I let go of the microphone, reached for the bone sword that Mr. Decarabia left here and stuck it on the pitcher's mound. I clapped my hands a few times, prayed in a lower voice and sighed before taking my way home to call my mother and eat something for dinner…

"May you rest in peace." Those were my final words before leaving the stadium.

And the rest… Is silence.


	12. Sweet poison, bitter candy

**Hey there! New chapter today! Nothing beats a lonely holyday but to write about couples right? A bit on the shorter side, this chapter? Perhaps, but this is actually just so I can wrap things up for the upcoming chapters now that we're finally reaching plot territory. You know what that means, right? Time to the black blade of misfortune to meet some important people and get himself off this world!But for now, let's wrap up the volume like this!**

 **DxD does not belong to me, it's the property of Ichiei Ishibumi and it's respective magazines. All the other characters such as OC's are mine, though. Like always, don't forget to R &R and I hope you get a good read. Think of this as an epilogue for this arc, so stay tuned~!**

* * *

 _Who's that man_?

Yes, who's that man who walks all alone next to Kuoh's train lines, leaning himself over a wall like a cowboy and exhaling such a handsome and confident aura of style?

Who's that man?

Who's that man who's only wear the very best and utmost in terms of fashion and pedigree, only his dapper Armani Exchange white shirt and waistcoat, black pants, brown Santoni shoes, white diamond earring on one ear and Seiko wristwatch?

Who's that man?

Who's that man not only radiant on style and clothes, but also on skin, having bathed for a while and sprayed his best perfume, not to mention some foundation around the eyes in order to cover those horrid bags under his eyes after some unfortunate events that happened on the previous week, a small single hairtail sprouting from the back of his impeccable hair?

Who's that man?

Who's that man, you ask?

Why, of course, it is I, Kokuto Kurokami, the man who always has luck and style by his side! The man who now waits for his beloved not!girlfriend to show up so we can take the train line to Hokkaido and serve ourselves some crabs and lobsters…

… Maybe? I'm thinking that maybe a good view from the beach and a visit to one of the Hokkaido Butsus would be nice as well, after all, producing myself with such care takes some time from my usual schedule, and doing so just to eat crab doesn't feel right at all. I'm a bona fide fashionista, so of course I like to show off. But oh well, it's not like it was my idea to go to Hokkaido and eat crab during the holydays, so I gotta work with the best that I can. Knowing Yuki, I know that she won't disappoint in her outfit either. We're a stupid not!couple anyway, of course she's thinking the same about me.

Anyway, here I am in the train station that will lead to our little trip to Hokkaido and Sapporo, leaning myself on a wall under the shades in order to avoid the sunlight from above, a surprise to have such a nice sunny day after some rainy season, not that I'm complaining or anything. Maybe a bit too sunny, I feel some heatstroke striking again due to my anemia from yesterday's match, and thinking too much about some revelations is also slowly messing with my mind. So not only two of my classmates and possibly the entirety of the student council are devils, one of the most popular males in Kuoh is also one of them… Or maybe he's one of the devil princesses Mr. Lannister was talking about, and seeing how Pretty Kiba is, I wouldn't be surprised. I might be wrong, but devil's culture might be different as well, so I might not be all that wrong in that regard...

"Oh, Kurokami…!"

"Hah…?" I know this voice, I know this voice very well, and if that's a good or bad thing, I don't know. I turned around and saw him, Issei Hyoudou, one of my peers in Kuoh academy, running towards me with a hand waving and a smug grin on his face. However, the thing that called for my attention the most was what he was hearing: a plain pink shirt, magenta jacket and some cheap jeans and white sneakers. I grimaced at his get up as he approached. Ew, get away from me, you fashion abomination. "Ugh… Hyoudou…"

"What's with that expression? You stay sour-faced since morning like that?" He retorts to my face against him. Once he gets close enough, he crosses his arms behind his head and shines me another smile, while lifting a hand to slap me a few times on the chest. "Well, at least unlike you, I have enough reason to smile the whole day: today's the day, dude! Finally I'll have my first date with Yuuma! That's so exciting!"

"Ah, yeah. You told me about it. Good for you." I commented, refusing to even look at him and his dumb clothes and allow my retinas to commit suicide for the mere sight of him. Poor girl, this Yuuma, having to spend all day with Hyoudou in this travesty of a costume. It almost makes me rip out my entire set and give it to him so he won't make a fool out of himself with… That. He smiles at me again and gives me a thumb up. I mimic such, still looking away. "I'm also waiting for my (not!)girlfriend to show up so we can go on a (non!)date as well. We're going to Hokkaido eat some crabs, maybe some sea viewing as well, and pay some visits to Lord Butsu…"

"Huh, what a coincidence. And you're going to Hokkaido for your date? Talk about some rich spoiled pretty boy. If your girlfriend wasn't so possessive and you weren't so creepy, you would be on par with prince charming Kiba." He chuckles to himself and for that I can only shrug. It's not he's wrong or anything, but being another prince next to Yuuto Kiba sounds so much like a pain, I rather keep things my own pace for what's worth. At least I got myself a girlfriend, which is the peak of a youth's romance. Still, being called creepy hurts my feelings a little, and like he's the one to talk. "I'm kidding, Kurokami. You're alright. You might be a little strange and creepy and your pretty boy aura pisses me off, but unlike Kiba, you're in the same boat as me! And that kinda makes me happy."

"You're welcome." I snickered at him back. As much as I would like to say a few good ones to him, I have to give it to him: in the social pyramid, he's on a higher step than I am. The whole school knows who he is while I'm just Yuki's boyfriend; he has his own circle of friends while I'm the creepy loner who sleeps through classes; and last but not least, he's completely human while I have to deal with the pain of being some bigshot's son, and I doubt that would make any difference on my everyday life except some psycho after me. At least I can boast that I have a better (much, much better) fashion sense than him any day. I turn to him: "So, how did you meet your date? And what made her ask you on a date? It can't be for your fashion sense, that's for sure."

"Hah! Maybe I am a bigger of a charm that I thought: she goes to a completely different school, and out of nowhere she asks me on a date because apparently it was love at first sight! I don't know much about her besides her name, but she's pretty, stylish… And has really big tits~, heheheheh~." He draws a rather lecherous expression on his face with a bit of drool falling off his lips, while weighting some imaginary breasts on his hands.

Poor guy, he's probably getting scammed by some eye-candy girl who'll suck him dry, and not in the way he'd want to, but I couldn't expect less from an idiot like him. And I know what you're thinking since I can't say anything since my relationship with Yuki is essentially the same thing, but I'll tell you this: No, it's not. I don't know how, but it's not, because I'm not an idiot. Fortunately, since he came dressed up like that, she'll probably dump him after this first date and not take advantage of this breast-loving sucker anymore...

Huh, I just made a pun.

"That's nice, Hyoudou. I'm pretty sure that she fell in love with your personality with that first encounter." I snark at him again, and his only response was a grin without even noticing the subtle insult. Like I said, what a sucker. Before we could continue with our little banter, some pretty girl distributing pamphlets walked right towards us and offered some of her papers.

"There you go, Mister~! Just take this paper and all of your wishes will come true!" The girl said in a sweet and cheerful tone, handing Hyoudou some pamphlet, which he took it with a big smile and wandering eyes. He was too busy staring at the girl's 'assets' to notice, but leaning over, I could see that piece of paper wasn't something out of a shop or restaurant, but it had a strange circle on it, more like a rune. I snapped back to reality when that same girl handed me one pamphlet too, so I extended a hand to pick it as well. "And here's one for you too~! Take this paper and all of your wishes will come true!"

"Yeah, yeah. Thank you very muc-…" I snail a bit on my tongue, but the moment I touched the paper, it suddenly caught fire and burned into nonexistence in an instant, and not just that, the girl who was distributing those jumped away from me, her eyes wide as they possibly could and body in a defensive pose, like if I just pulled a gun on thin air or something. I looked at my hand that still had a bit of crisp on it, and then back at her. She's trembling. What the hell is that all about? "Huh… Miss? Are you okay?"

"Dangerous… You're… Dangerous. Dangerous." And I couldn't even figure it out what she meant by that, she just fled away from sight the moment her trembling body could finally move, stumbling across the road and almost getting run over by a car, all to get away from me. I look back at the scorched mark on my hands. Maybe there's more to this pamphlet that I thought. Hyoudou comes closer to check on me.

"Whoa, that was something. 'You okay, Kurokami?" He asks me, and ever-so slowly I turn back to look at him. I'm fine, thanks for asking by the way, but the pamphlet is no longer with us I'm afraid. I dust my hands a few times to get rid of the crisps on them.

"Yes, I'm okay. Maybe that paper granted my wish to get rid of it without polluting the environment or something. Seriously, the lack of trashcans around is astounding." I shrug. I should just ask him to give me his pamphlet so I could give a better look on it and see how shady that piece of paper really is, but I don't want to burn it away and give him a sour face. He gives me a typical 'are you serious?' look, crossing his arms and sighing. "By the way, Hyoudou, may I ask you to promise me one thing: If there is a second date with this Yuuma girl, please get a better getup for it? I'm having an aneurysm just by looking at your outfit. I don't want to be rude, but you look like a clown."

"Wow, so much for not wanting to be rude." He snarks at me with another bored look, and I can't help but to pity his lack of knowledge about the fashion world, I bet he doesn't even know the difference between a fake and a real Gucci purse. I have to honest, he's pretty nice to talk to, but if he wants a harem he so much talks about, he'll have to start looking after himself and find some common sense in clothes, otherwise no one would want a Runway Project reject as a gran master. "Give me some slack, why don't you Kurokami? This is my first date, so I came with the best I have!"

"Yep, she definitely fell in love with your… Endearing personality. Can't say much though, but at least Yuki won't be ashamed to be with me around. Kokuto Kurokami, the man who always has fashion sense by his side." I chuckle at him, and I could see that Hyoudou was already flaming a little with my statements. I say 'statements' because they're the barest truths.

"Well, at least Yuuma won't complain that I look like a Michael Jackson rip-off. What's with that getup too? It's like you will go to Roppongi instead of Hokkaido!" Now it is his time to laugh at me. However, his laughing track was cut short as I simply shrug at him with a sardonic smile on my lips, making him a bit confused. I lift a finger and start to make a negative gesture.

"Tsk tsk tsk, Hyoudou, Hyoudou. Friend, buddy, classmate, I like you, but sometimes you're so dumb it hurts my feelings that you probably won't find yourself a stable girlfriend." I said to him, making him frown a little. "I have you know, but today's set is Armani Exchange, Santoni and a Seiko Watch. An uncultured simpleton like you must not know, but girls and women do, even if they're a bit on the outrageous side, and that's why you have such a difficulty in finding yourself a match. Unlike us men, women are around 85% looks and the rest is everything else, and if you're not in their standards from the get-go, i.e. from your clothes and make-up, they won't even approach you. And guys like us, with no muscle mass, charisma our even good personalities, clothes and presentation are everything."

"…"

"…"

"But…"

"And if you think women like men with good personalities, that might be true in some cases, but people who are crap inside will also look like crap on the outside. Guys who want to be accepted and find a girlfriend, but put no effort in look good are just egocentric." I said those truths with some fingers pointing at him, and it was his time to look at me with a bit of disgust. What? It's true, women are mostly looks and charm, everything else, like personality or charisma are just bonuses. Sure, I'm in the same boat since I like having the center of the attention with my cute, busty not!girlfriend, but she's the one who approached me first, so it's not my fault at all, I'm just taking advantage of the ride. I look back at Hyoudou, but unlike I was expecting him to look, he looks a bit uncharmed and deadpanned for my response to his little insults. That's new, I thought he would be pondering those for a while.

"Geez, if I didn't already know you had a girlfriend; I would swear that you were one of those sour-faced guys on the internet who are bitter because they don't have a girlfriend…" He deadpans at me, and for that I stuck my tongue out for him in mischief. "That's just too cruel, Kurokami. You shouldn't think like that, not all women are like that, I'm sure."

"Fine then, if you really think like that despite being a virgin, then good luck with your love life. You might become great one day, Hyoudou, but I doubt having a stable and healthy relationship will be in your portfolio…" I joked. And as always, he comes crying blood from his eyes with bulging pupils and red face against me, and so I again keep my distance from his with an arm.

" **WHO ARE YOU CALLING A VIRGIN, YOU DARK, SPOILED, RICHY RICH PRETTY BOY! THAT IS WHY I HATE PEOPLE LIKE YOU**!" He exclaims while my only response to him was a laugh under my breath, still holding him by the face so his nasty grimace won't reach me. Talk about the lack of confidence or something. But this is fun, messing with people is kind of fun, but I shouldn't tease him so much or he'll end up hating me, that's for sure.

"Oh, I smelled the scent of virgin losers so much, I thought that Stan Lee's funeral was being held somewhere around here. But as I can see now, it's just the shitty Hyoudou guy and my good-for-nothing boyfriend…"

"Hah. Took you long enough, Yuki." And I turn around to see the owner of the new voice that calls both of us out. As expected, wearing her Gianfranco Ferré coat, some black Giorgio Armani boots and with a Gucci purse and beret on her head, there she was, my cute and busty not!girlfriend Shirayuki Shirogane, eyeing us with such venomous and contemptuous stare, I thought she wanted to carve a hole in the middle of my eyes. She approaches us and pinches my cheek with her gloved hands.

"Silly Kokkun, just like a Wizard, I'm never late or early. I'm arrive precisely when I mean to." She declares with a ghost of a smile and letting go of me just for good measure, and then turns to Hyoudou, who could only eye her back with a bit of ire since what happened between the two not too many days ago. "And how about you, perverted clown? How dare you approach my boyfriend like that? I don't want him getting any form of disease from you and your pathetic existence, so why don't you just move along elsewhere and spread your seed somewhere else, asshole? Don't make me hit you again."

"Screw you, Shirogane!" Hyoudou interjects back with a finger pointing at her. "It's not because you're pretty and have nice tits that you can call me like that, you bitchy bitch!"

"Hey Hyoudou, I would appreciate if you don't call my girlfriend a bitch like that, just saying." I lifted a hand to call for his attention, and so he snaps from her back to me, scratching the back of his head in embarrassment.

"Oh my bad, Kurokami. That one slipped." He says with a sheepish grin, while I could see Yuki snap her own neck a few times by the sides and crack her fingers while approaching Hyoudou.

"Asshole Hyoudou, I bet you want me to break your fingers again." She threatens him, and even with all the bravado, Hyoudou takes a few steps back since the aura Yuki is leaking out of herself only screams 'murder'. Before she could do anything to ruin this day and probably commit a crime, I pick her by the arm and drag her away from him, from Hyoudou. I made him a sign saying him to thank me later for saving his skin, and he nods and makes an 'okay' sign. He might be an idiot but at least he knows how to read the mood, and that's some points for his love life, if I can say so myself. At least he's not one of those dense light novel protagonists. After a few seconds, here I am holding hands with Yuki after a quick jog to stay away as far as possible from Hyoudou. I turn back to her, and she's still eyeing the poor guy across the station. "Asshole…"

"Yuki, please don't bring any problems for us. It's bad enough back in Kuoh academy, I don't want you to be messing with Hyoudou outside of it too. Even more that I doubt anyone will give you a free pass for that." I say to her in order to call for her attention, and she turns back to me, staring me directly in the eyes. One, two seconds pass, and she then lifts her hand and shakes it off my grasp. I didn't even was holding her that tight, but she has some strength on her arm. She frowns and pouts now.

"Bleh~, are you defending that scum-of-the-earth-piece-of-trash-good-for-nothing Hyoudou? I gotta say, Kokkun, as your cute and wealthy girlfriend who expects great things of a nobody like you, who so happens to be her boyfriend, I'm shocked. I really am." She makes a pose, both hands on her cheek and deadpan stare, in mocking shock, and for that I can only sigh. She might be my not!girlfriend, but like everyone in my life, she can be quite a pain to deal with. "Are you cheating on me with Hyoudou? Are you two having an affair? Are you in love with him? I'll beat you up for that for choosing that guy over me even if you're a faggot, faggot."

"I'm not defending Hyoudou, nor am I in love with him. Really, Yuki." I make 'that' stare at her, and she snaps back from her enraged pettiness and pouts again, this time with a bit of guilt. Another one that takes some time, but can read the mood a little. I sigh yet again. "Look, I get it: he's a pervert and a bit of an idiot, not to mention his horrid, horrid sense of fashion, but he's not that bad, and you can't expect him to say something nice when you're all confrontational like that. Just ignore him and leave him be, he knows what expects him regardless."

"I can't, he's a pervert and he should just die." She shrugs and says those things like we're discussing the weather or something, kind of creepy if you ask me. Man, and she asks if I'm the one who has a crush on Hyoudou, she's the one obsessing over him. "All perverts should just die, it's what I think. Just that."

"May I ask why? It's not like he killed someone or anything." I ask her.

"It's because, Kokkun, when I was a little girl… I WAS RAPED BY A PERVERT!"(lie)

"…"

"…"

…

"Well, that's sad." I shrug off that comment. She didn't even try to emulate any signs of post-traumatic stress disorder or any form of change besides the volume of her voice, and once I let that sink in, she lowered her stance, which makes me think that none of what she said is true at all. Even if it is true, she seems to have overcome that with no issue.

"And that's why I don't like perverts." She finishes her monologue with a shrug. "They should all die, Hyoudou included, Hyoudou specially."

"You shouldn't be rude to him regardless, Yuki. Besides, guys who talk big like him and his harem king ideas usually accomplish little to nothing on that regard after a while. He might say a lot, but he's pretty harmless." I shrug again, and she pouts even more, her face getting a little red. "He talks big but he's not the one to do that. You should worry about secret perverts who are all nice and fancy on the outside but in the end all they want is a piece of your flesh. Y'know, those guys who look superior and talk smoothly but they're just as bad."

"Like you?" I made a grimace for her comment. Now she's calling me a rapist too. I deserve that somehow, I'm defending Hyoudou, after all. I just don't want her to cause a ruckus around just because she doesn't like him, but it seems that it didn't work. I let out a sigh, lowering my head a bit.

"Please don't accuse me on being a rapist, Yuki. That really hurts my feelings." I said in a lower tone, feeling miserable for too long ever since this supposed date started. "Can't we just get it on with our date? We still need to get some tickets for the bullet train for the trip, and I have the feeling it'll make me sick somehow. I want to eat crab too, so I can't be sick."

"You're so hopeless, Kokkun. But again, that's what make you cute and worthy of being my boyfriend." She let out a small puff of a sigh out of her mouth, and turned around while reaching a hand for her purse, all the way walking to the ticket booth. "I'm going ahead and buy the tickets. Go find yourself some aspirins to withstand the trip because if you fall, I won't catch you up. I might be your girlfriend, but I'm not that attached to you."

"Yeah, yeah. At least the trip won't take long. Go ahead Yuki, I meet you there." I wave at her, and she winks at me with hearts and stars, if that makes any sense at all. Now what? She's probably right about me getting some aspirins for the trip, so maybe I should do just that. Maybe some snacks too? "But where I can find myself some snacks that won't make me want to vomit? I gotta work something with class, otherwise this whole getup will get ruined… Sigh…"

Suddenly, I feel something funny run down my spine. It's not a nice form of funny, rather, it's actually quite sinister, like a chill or a breeze that just won't leave me alone. Strange, it's the same sensation I felt the other day against , but somehow different if that makes any sense. I turn around trying to locate the source of all of that feelings, and in the end my eyes landed on some girl which was by the other side of the station, but not just any girl: she was together with Hyoudou, so affectionately hanging on his arm and resting her head on his shoulder. Is that his girlfriend, the Yuuma girl? Not to mention… Yes, it's from her I'm feeling the uneasiness. For a second, we cross eyes, and out of the sudden, she flashes me a smile, an affectionate smile nonetheless, and then turns back to Hyoudou. What is that all about?

Man, what day is today, anyway? Can I get a single day for peace, even for a date with my not!girlfriend?

"Kokkun, I'm going to leave you behind if you don't come already~." Snapping me back from my reverie, I hear Yuki calling for me by the other side of the station, waving her own ticket on the air. I turn at her, then tried to look back at the couple which I was staring, but they were gone now. Why do I have this feeling that something quite bad will happen now? First that pamphlet, now that girl with an uneasy aura… Sigh, maybe I'm just thinking too much, and maybe my brain is frying because of the anemia and the shock that Hyoudou has now a girlfriend. I shake those thoughts away and follow Yuki to the station. I shouldn't be late for my own date, anyway.

"Yeah, I'm coming Yuki. Don't leave without me." I wave at her, picking my ticket with her and heading towards the inner parts of the station in order to face the trip that awaits us. Maybe if I concentrate a bit, maybe I can withstand the whole trip without any problems. I'm thinking too much, I just need to… Relax…

…

…

"Huuuuuurl~…"

"Gross. Kokkun, you really should've told me that you have motion sickness. You're ruining our whole date, now." Yuki complains once we reach Hokkaido Station, and I could finally let go of my nausea on the nearest trashbin, making waste of my entire breakfast while Yuki stares back at my misery. Yeah, that's right, I have the worst case of motion sickness above all else. That's why I don't like going to very faraway places, and why I chose Kuoh academy since it's the closer school to home. My own weaknesses ended up wrapping me into even tighter shit since I also met a bunch of supernatural creatures there as well. Figures, maybe I'm not as lucky as I thought I was putting such in perspective. In the end, I hurled the remaining of my bile, and cleaned the bit of it from my lips. When I turned around, I saw Yuki handing me a bottle of water. I look at her, then at the bottle, picking it for myself. "But I guess that makes us even, now. There, I forgive you now, you probably are happy for having such a fair and understandable girlfriend."

"Thanks Yuki, you're really the best (Not!)girlfriend." I said that without a second thought. What can I say, she's spoiled and a bit mean sometimes, but I can't complain. I expected some reaction from her since this is actually quite a bold and romantic quote, but turning to her and getting up from the floor, I notice that she didn't even flinch. Not even a blush. Man, talk about an unromantic girl. Better change the subject before she makes a mean comment about it. "We should rent a bike to ride it around Hokkaido. It'll be easier to move around, not to mention since I'll be the one riding I won't be getting sick from it."

"Yeah, let us. Maybe that way I can forget how cheesy your attempt at flirting was." And there it goes, making fun of my personality of all things. I can't help it, I'm just that stylish, so letting those escape are usually out of my control, all things considered. She turns back at me, and blushes a little. "At least you have a good sense of fashion, better than Hyoudou's, but that's not hard. Even so, nice Seiko watch."

"Huh… Thanks, Yuki." I replied with a bit of a blush myself and a tired smile. I knew being such a fashionista would become in handy. Like always, luck sides with I, Kokuto Kurokami.

Bike rented, nausea took care off, we resumed our journey through Hokkaido and Sapporo with nothing but crab and some quality time with each other. It's not that bad at all for a date, not bad at all: the flesh cold wind on my face as we slide across the cold gushes of Hokkaido and alternating between the rural area and the more industrialized ones, taking out time to look at the sky, and best of all, the feeling of Yuki holding on me for dear life on the back of our seat, an arm around my body on my stomach as look like a couple out of a Kurosawa movie. So this is the romance of a teenage couple, it feels nice and all, plus the typical Hokkaido crab we'll eat later, however…

"Hey Yuki, do you mind if we stop by some temple so I can do something? Nothing too big, just a small stop and then we'll go with the schedule." I asked her from the front part of my seat. A hand on her head in order to keep her beret in place, she turns to me.

"I don't mind. The sumo match we reserve at the local stadium is in two hours so we have time to spare, and seeing one of the Hokkaido's great Butsus would be nice. Although I ask, any reason for that besides sightseeing? You don't look like the religious type, Kokkun." She asks me back.

"…" I don't look like the religious type? That's kind of ironic considering who my father is, but that aside, yes, I do have some business to do in a temple. I lightly reach for my pocket and touch the bloody switchblade in there, taking a quick sigh and pedaling even faster now. "I made… A promise, for people that are no longer in this world. Might as well honor such and put their souls to rest."

"Oh, okay." She simply says. She probably didn't understand a bit, but at least I got to do something to put my heart at ease.

Soon enough, we reached a very big Buddhist temple and while Yuki was taking photos, sightseeing and making fun of some monks around, I reached for the heart of said temple, clapped my hands a few times and prayed for the souls of all who were killed by the switchblade in my possession so that they could rest in peace. While I was at it, I also prayed for Mr. Lannister so that, wherever he is now, he can find some peace of soul, after all, nobody deserves to burn for all eternity. With that done, I proceeded to seal that blade with some parchment, write some mantras on it and bury it somewhere nice on top of the small mount were the temple was. A nice place indeed for rest, may they find peace…

The rest of the date was as expected: we watch some sumo matches, walked around Sapporo, slid across the streets and fields of Hokkaido, frolic around the cold beaches and finally ate crabs, lobsters and grilled meat around the heart of the island, all while picking on each other and having small little moments like holding hands or sharing some ice-cream with each other. Even if she's not my real girlfriend and I'm not her real boyfriend, I'm having a blast with this date, and maybe get to feeling how a real relationship works. But of course, we're not a couple, but it's fun nonetheless…

I wonder if Hyoudou is having as much fun as I am right now…

I don't want to think how much suffering his girlfriend Yuuma is getting, though…


	13. Apollo XI, the angelic Moon

**Hey there. A bit of RL problems getting into me and with a new semester on arrival, maybe updates might start to loose a little, but don't worry, because as for now, it's a new chapter in Kokuto's adventure! This yime, we delve a little more into the backstory of some characters and some known faces will be shown, are you ready. I know I am!**

 **So, as always, don't forget to R &R, have a nice day and read and good luck in the upcoming year. also, sorry for the delays. As always, DxD does not belong to me, it belongs to Ishibumi Ichiei and it's respective magazines. Enjoy!**

* * *

 ***CLICK!***

 ***Bzzzzt~!***

…

 _'Hello, dear viewers. You can just call me **Mrs. A**., and you must be wondering why I am doing here, right on your T.V. right now. Well, let me say the following: I am the one who shall guide your soul into paradise. I am the person with a plan and the person with the guts, which I assure you, both are in the lacking these days with your false Gods, liable media, cancerous propaganda and fake rulers. No, no, no, my dear viewers, I am not the woman of false prophecies or weightless promises, I am the real speaker of a force beyond this realm, a force that shall lead us to a place with no suffering, sorrow or death. As we speak right now, behind me, you can see the Akayama dome, the place where today they are holding an idol concert, this, this Sugahara girls or something idols. Now, these men, these dudes, they have no God inside their hearts, they're like, like puppets of their own desire and lust, following those manmade false idols and straying from the teachings of the true God. I mean, these dudes, like, are professional onanists, guys who beat off five times a day or more, to hollow entertainments and empty calls. Well, I shall change that today. I offer you, dear viewers, something you can grasp, something you can reach and praise for it's the truth, something that is… Real. Illusions no more, fakeness no more, a true path, following the teachings of our one true God! And as a soldier of such God, I shall demonstrate the power of Him against those false idols. I shall demonstrate in Three… Two… One…'_

 ***BOOOOOOOOOOM!***

 _'See that? Now, that's how you deal with heathens and false prophets, this is how the one true God acts, not with words or empty promises, but with actions, meaningful actions. This is only a demonstration, of course, of our power. So if you want to join us and reach heavens, come to Daten city, and I shall show you the path. Our peaceful, dear city and its citizens, people of God and goodness will welcome true-believers with open arms, and guide them towards the heavens of our lord. So with that said, I bid you all a 'see you later', since I know my voice, a true prophet's voice, will reach the hearts of those hearing those humble words. And never forget that Daten city will always have its doors open for those who seek truth.'_

 _…_

 _'And I know you're watching this, Mr. Black Blade, son of the leader of the watchers, the Crownless Prince. By the time you're watching this, my package will undoubtedly have reached you, and so my message for you. And so, I await your coming, o Grigori's prodigal son. ***Chu~*.** Don't make me wait. Please, bring me my deliverance.'_

 ***Bzzt~!***

…

 ***CLICK!***

…

You might be wondering what the hell just happened. Honestly, I have no idea myself.

What I do know, however, is that when I left Yuki back at the station and came home after a long die of Sumo watching and crab eating, I found myself a nice little package on my front door. At first I thought it was another of mom's international presents, like her giant matryoshka dolls or that totem that scares both bad spirits and the neighborhoods, but the moment I opened it, I saw it was none of those. The package, that had no name or sender in it, contained only a bladeless cross-shaped hilt of a sword, a pistol with two shiny pellet-shaped bullets and a small white card with 'instructions' written on it in deep red letters:

* * *

 _1._ _The First bullet is to kill;_

 _2._ _The second bullet is to make sure it's dead._

 _Don't make me wait, crownless prince. Please, bring me deliverance._

* * *

At first, I didn't know what to make of it, only that the sender, whoever it was, knew who and what I was, so I could only assume it was part of the supernatural, ergo those weapons are as well. When I thought I was just someone just playing a prank of me, and I could call the cops so they could confiscate those weapons even though they look like plastic airguns, I turn on the tv only to hear from the news about a terrorist attack that happened in the Akayama dome, where an explosion reaped the lives of an idol group and its fans, counting at least 4,000 deaths.

After it, they broadcasted a hijacked transmission of a masked blond woman saying some nonsense about heavens, false idols and 'true path of the true God', not unlike those religious fanatics. For a moment, I only thought of skipping that channel into something brighter, but then, the woman in the transmission spoke to me… She spoke my name, sorta, she spoke my sobriquet. Something also about a package, the package that it was delivered to me, and ending her broadcast with those same words on the card, exactly those same words. No doubt about it, she was speaking to me. She wants me to meet her…

…

I gulp a lump of air in my mouth, and what's that?, I feel a chill down my spine despite the nervous smile on my lips. What is this 'deliverance' she talks about? And why did she give me a bladeless hilt and that toy gun? What do you mean 'to kill' or 'make sure it's dead'? And most important… What kind of joker names a city Daten? Is Yuki somehow involved with the development of this city? Because she definitely would think of such cretin pun!

Jokes aside, good things are unlikely to come from this Mrs. A, and by giving me such 'demonstration' of her power and religion plus the package, she's definitely giving me a subtle ultimatum. She knows where I live, she knows who and what I am, and she pleads me to 'not make her wait'. Yeah right, just call me right away instead of playing the nice girl, lady. Even so, the trembling just doesn't go away, and sweat starts to run down my face. I swallow another lump of air, and turn off the T.V. so I could put my delivered weapons on the table and pounder to myself the thus situation. I came to a conclusion that I didn't want to:

I'll have to go to Daten City and bring Mrs. A her deliverance, whatever the hell that means.

Otherwise, I have no idea what she might do since she knows me, where I live, and I know what she can do. Maybe it's a hollow threat, maybe she'll explode my house from where she stands, don't know, don't want to, better get going before her promise fulfills itself. Aw, but I just got home from my non!date with Yuki, do I really have to go now? What a letdown, to think I was thinking in having a nice holyday end in my bed and pretend I was dead until the next morning. But I shouldn't be thinking like that, otherwise everything I'll get is an explosion up my face. Better act fast or else…

I picked my phone and started to search for this place, Daten city, and to my surprise, it was located somewhere near Kuoh, in a deserted place in the middle of nowhere in a nearby town. Apparently, it was founded not much long ago, about a decade or so ago, and it wasn't even a city previously, but an abandoned chunk of land. No cities, no houses or even roads. Suddenly, a woman founded said city under religious pretenses and nowadays is a gathering place for people looking for 'salvation', if that makes any sense. What do you know, this place in fact exists, and if anything it sounds more like a place of a cult.

I think I heard Yuki talking about it a few days ago, about their leader suddenly now taking a few… Extremes measures to keep her city safe and her religious at bay. Didn't think she would reach such places like terrorist attacks and network hijacking, but I shouldn't be surprised after all that happened this week with me. I wonder, though, if she's acting because of those supernatural occurrences that have been happening to me and by elimination, in Kuoh, or that would have regardless of my involvement. Or maybe supernatural creatures just attract themselves together, like stand users…

Oh well, I guess I'll just have to buy a ticket and go to Daten city and take a better look at this Mrs. A, and what she means by those presents she just gave me. A gun, a bladeless hilt and a small 'invitation' card, and for me to her, 'deliverance'. Things are making less and less sense, but I need to take a little dip into this pool of nonsense and see what I can fish from there. It seems those little presents will also come in handy if anything happens, but of course, I won't kill anyone or anything… I hope.

As for again today, I can only hope. After all, I am Kokuto Kurokami, the man who has luck by his side, at least I hope this time…

…

…

And now I am at the nearest bus station to said Daten city, throwing crabs and lobsters down a trashbin after the nauseous trip from Kuoh to here, now bottling down water to get rid of the acid and bitterness out of my mouth. So distracted by my own misery, I didn't pick the bus leaving me all by myself, and only now I noticed that I'm completely alone at here. Nobody else dropped by, and nobody else is here to embark, it's me, myself and I. Guess the pilgrimage season is not open just yet, just deliverance…

"So, is this the closer I can get from Daten city? That really sucks… Oh well." I sigh to myself while adjusting my little briefcase where my… Presents were hidden, after all, a guy like me carrying around a hilt and a gun, no matter how innocent-looking they are, might cause some ruckus around, so any care less is ridiculous. I look at the map on my phone and Daten city is just a few minutes away from here. But at least now it's a bit cloudy, so the sky won't be ruining my skin today. Even so, what's with this weather? Sun, then rain, then clouds, then Sun again, someone is messing with it, it seems. However, looking around, this place sure needs a bit of rain. "So, this is paradise, huh? I guess my expectations were a bit too high."

I spoke to no one once I embarked on my lonely walk to Daten city. Really, this paradise is indeed a bit… Barren. Not a single sign of life, not a particle of civilization, a quiet place that I might think it works as a safe haven for some, but not for me. It makes me feel a bit exposed, all things considered. Such loneliness, such quietness, it's like I'm walking on a cemitery, and taking in consideration this place's history, it's not very far from the truth. It should be a calming, silent walking, but I can't shake the feeling of ominousness coming in front of me. I look forward, and the only thing I face is a tall tower ripping the skies with its tip, like it wants to reach for the heavens or at least poke the moon out of its way.

Step by step, mile by mile, the tower doesn't seem to change shape or height at all, always standing tall on its base, but the scenario changes little by little: instead of a wasteland of pure sand and grass, this place starts to look a bit more modern. It took a while, but I could finally feel my feet stepping on concrete instead of the soft earth, and the infinite plains tinted in golden were now replaced by a tall, gray concrete wall, blank on everything except by the a painting of a giant black cross, which on it, were written in white: 'Daten City, the city of God and salvation'.

"The city of 'God and salvation'? It seems more like a prison to me." I murmured to myself in jest, knocking my knuckles on the hard, solid wall in front of me which carried the city's name and logo. Seriously, if this was supposed to be a sacred place, why it has to look so creepy and hopeless? Maybe Mrs. A's tactics were a bit too extreme even for local standards and after that broadcast, I would also hide myself inside this fortress. I wonder how I'll be able to get in.

"Hey young man, over here…"

"Huh…?" I remember this voice, and accordantly, the smell of soup, noodles and pork fills up my nostrils. I turn myself to a random direction, and there it is, that little wheeled ramen stand and next to it that same afro-haired, dark-skinned bright man with aviator glasses obscuring his eyes even though it's already getting dark and smoking a cigarette between his teeth. He's waving at me again, and so I wave back at him. "Oh, Mister. How fancy to meet you here, of all places."

"Ay, you know how business works in this country, lad. Gotta expand my horizons and meet new people, otherwise I'll have no food to my own. The infamous Hebihara ramen might be the best around, but that means nothing if people don't know it!" He laughs between his teeth and blowing smoke out of his nostrils. I mean, he's not wrong, in this dog-eat-dog world, those who have tunnel-vision are the first to go. "How about you, sonny? Are you meeting with someone yet again? I gotta say, you guys choose very exquisitive places for dates! This Daten city place is all kinds of messed-up, if you ask me."

"I… Guess you can say that. Not the time of date that I'd want, though." I sighed looking at the massive wall separating us from this Date City. Well, this Mrs. A did ask me on a date, and I did come all the way up here, but unlike the last one, I don't think I'll like this one at all. I hear the sound of boiling water, then splashing noodles and I can smell the scent of soup coming from behind me. I turn around and before I know it the guy behind the counter slides me a bowl of ramen yet again. I give it a quick look. "Uuuh~…"

"Well, just like last time, if there's anything you need to do before a date in a beautiful night such as tonight is a good old ramen bowl from the Hebihara's stand, the one and only!" He flashes a smile at me, and just like last time, I had no reason to refuse such delicacy, even more that I just hurled everything I've eaten in a random trashcan all the way here, so I'm kinda hungry, all things considered. I passed through the small red curtain with the name of the shop and stood behind the counter, picking my chopsticks and snapping them in half in order to eat the noodles in front of me, this time it having a translucid soup and filled with vegetables, beansprouts and pepper. "Here it is, a special Kanto-style Tanmen for my very special costumer! So eat up before it gets cold!"

"Well then, thanks for the food." And so I did my usual thing, clapping my hands in order to honor the food and now slurping on those delicious noodles and soup, which were like before as good as any restaurant I've been in my life, too good for a simple homemade ramen stand, the braised vegetables and lukewarm soup making a fine combo in a light but satisfying meal. As I eat, yet again Mr. Hebihara lights a cigarette between his teeth in order to have a lonely time, this time his aviator glasses shining brightly against the full moon above our heads. He takes a shot out of his cigarette, blows down a curtain of smoke.

"Such a beautiful thing, the moon. The only companion of our lonely, tired planet. Source of inspiration, love, promises, but also of fear, dread and delusions. However, all of this a mirage, the light that shines brighter it's the Sun's, while we only see his reflection on the pale night illusion. Could it be… Bright light on the night sky, will you deceive this fool's heart as well?"

"Doing your poetries yet again? That one was nice." I said slurping on some more noodles and taking a sip out of the soup. He let out a small laugh to himself and flicked the butt of his cigarette away, kicking off some dirt off his shoes and leaning on his small stand.

"Thanks, sonny. In such beautiful nights, the Gods of poetry do tend to bestow me some really sick words and baller lyrics. Don't mind me though, those are just a way to make myself feel some bliss after a hard day of work." He smiles a toothy one at me, and all I can do now is to give him in response a thumbs up. By the time I was done with my bowl, he flicks his second cigarette butt and hands me yet another card, this time a silver card with the same drawing of a heart on the back and a silver moon in the front. "Speaking of bliss, don't forget to take your little gift for eating the one and only Hebihara shopping! I must say, kiddo, you pulling two of those cards in a row, lady Luck must really have a thing for you or something!"

"Well, I guess that you're not wrong." I said, picking my wallet in order to pick some money in order to pay for the bowl of Tanmen and save that little card I earned for eating it. Again, this might be the best ramen I've eaten like ever, and so I slapped again two 1000 yen bills on the counter, much for his delight as he opens another toothy grin. Only now I notice that his teeth are pearly white. "Well, again, thanks for the meal. I still the best ramen I've ever eaten in a while, so thanks for it. Here's a little 'thank you' gift. I hope I'm not being rude."

"Well, now the one who would be rude would be me, refusing such kindness. Thank you very much, and may the stars guide you in your date, lady-killer. As for me…" And so he flicks his last cigarette butt and starts to put away the bowls, the caldrons and the noodles, now putting himself in front of handler in order to push his ramen stand elsewhere. "… I'm getting out of here and find a better place for costumers. Apparently those inside the wall don't like ramen very much. So godspeed for you, sonny. May luck smiles at you for today."

"Yeah, yeah. For you too. I'm already too luck for what's worth." I wave at him a goodbye as he pulls his food kart away from me into the horizon. Before he could vanish from the darkness of the night, he lights more cigarette between his mouth and smiles, blowing smoke out of his nostrils.

"Fool of great luck, don't refuse good fortune even when well-off without it. Tonight, the moon shall shine its delusional light the brightest, then be consumed by darkness. Now, to the gates of madness." He laughs one more time, a chilly laugh that makes me sweat a little, and then disappears into the night without a single more word. Maybe he's right, if he's giving me a bow to good luck, I should wholeheartedly accept it, because you with kindness you pay, kindness you'll receive. I know… That much, considering my Sacred Gear, so I waved into the darkness one last time and bid goodbye to the shadow he left, and also returned to my one-man walk towards the said Daten City.

He's right, kindness is repaid with kindness, so I shouldn't scoff as his good luck wish, as unnecessary as it is. With that in mind, I started to walk to the opposite direction from him, into the direction of the said gates of madness. Much to my surprise or luck, I did end up facing a giant gate made out of the same material as the walls, only a small opening indicating that it was indeed an entrance to somewhere. I felt compelled to knock a few times just so I could see what would happen if I do, but before I could even reach for the door, some guy wearing a black coat, a black hat hidden his other features and a scowl I could swear it could pierce through metal. He holds his hand in a stop sign right in front of me.

"Halt there, young man! This area is strictly controlled! Even if you want to enjoy the paradise beyond these gates, I have to see some documents and baggage!" He says in a strict tone, making me straighten myself up for him. Oh crap, do I need some kind of invitation to enter Daten city? But my research did say I just need to want to enter the place! But I guess someone to guard the gates is to be expected. I take a deep breath and instead hand him my 'invitation'.

"I… Was invited to come here. I don't know if this might be valid, but I received quite a… Gift. I hope this is enough." I said to him, putting my hands into my pockets and ready to turn around and run back home considering that this guard man has his own weapons with him, and all things considered, I'm carrying in my backpack a BB-like gun with some freaky ammunition and a bladeless hilt. He takes the card to himself, adjusting his glasses to take a closer look at it, and after a quick inspection, he double takes at me, then at card, at me again.

"Oh, so you're Mr. Kurokami? My sincere apologies, Mr. Kurokami. Mrs. A did say you would come here for a very special mission from her. I assume you already have the equipments necessary for such?" He asks with a simple and awkward smile on his lips, and I couldn't help but to dumbly not at his statement. I guess that he's right in a way, but those words do make little to no sense to me. Does he know that I'm here to 'kill' someone? Or is he in the dark about this all? I don't know, but at least I get to enter the city. He makes a positive sign at me and walked all the way to his little cabin besides the gates. "Just a moment, sir, I shall open the gates for you. Since it's almost 8 o'clock, Mrs. A must be preaching her teachings at the central cathedral! You just need to follow the road to the heart of the city, and from there you can't miss it! Well then, Mr. Kurokami, I'm honored to open the door to paradise on Earth! Welcome to Daten City!"

"Huh, thanks." Those were my last words to him, the only ones I could think of from the back of my head. Well, I got a free pass into the city, so I have no room to complain. As the guard clicked a few buttons, the gates started to move in front of me, opening the passage to this Daten city, where yet again fate has brought me into. I sigh, and step into the light of this new challenge. Whatever I like it or not, I have to do this, and after all, I am Kokuto Kurokami, the man who always has luck by his side, so I should be fine from here on out. I step forward into the blinding light of Daten city, into the oblivious future between me and Mrs. A…

…

…

 _'Welcome to Daten city. The place closest to heaven!'_

As the gates closed firmly behind my back, that's what read in a giant poster above my head, picturing those massive words and above them the figures of a happy family wearing cross-themed clothes and each one carrying a bible, in the middle of them that same masked lady that killed over 4,000 people in a single night, all of them sharing smiles with each other. It's almost ironic, even…

"The place 'closest to heaven', it says." I murmur to myself, taking a look into said city: A clear, immaculate place with no one in sight, just a rows and rows of two-store houses, all lined-up in a single ghastly, empty street with no one in sight, just the pale light coming from the light poles above my head, all emanating that eerie pale light on the white streets. I adjust my backpack on my back, taking my way inside the place. "A bit too uninviting for such a sacred place, don't you think, Tama? Although we should respect it, this is a religion I'm not too aware of. Time for some exploration. Head me up, Tama."

The little cat that materialized by my shoulder just meowed happily as I started my walk into the city. Or should I say neighborhood since there are no signs of life or anything besides houses around here. I walk and walk, but I see no one else or anything but houses and outdoors with several messages with the figure of that same masked lady. 'Daten city, the city of God!', 'A place free of sin and malice, Daten City!', 'The future lies in the hand of our Creator starting by Daten City!'; they all look so creepy, as if her image is looking directly at me. Finally, after some time, I find myself a convenient store called 'God's place'. All this walk made me thirsty and that tanmen was a bit too salty for me, so maybe I can buy myself something to drink before resuming my walk. With that in mind, I reached for my wallet and take a step inside…

"Hello there, young man! Are you new?" Only to face a very freak image right behind the counter: there was only an old man with wrinkling face and balding head wearing a white spacesuit, or something quite similar! I was taken back by his freak appearance, but he reassures me with a friendly handwave and a smile that shown some missing teeth. "Oh, don't be scared! I know you're new since you're not wearing our special pure suit, but I'm human just like you! Now come on in, make yourself at home!"

"O-Okay." I meekly say, taking a deep breath and a step inside. Maybe this is another form of preaching in this city? I have no idea, but I shouldn't care if he doesn't. I take a closer look around, and this seems to be just like any convenient store, full with some cheap candy, some junk food and drinks and even a few magazines, although those were all sponsored by Mrs. A, because of course they do. I just need some water to wash away the salt in my mouth, so I pick a bottle of water from the refrigerator and pass onto the cashier for the old man to scan it for me. "That's all, sir. I'm in a hurry, so could you please scan it as soon as possible?"

"Hohoh, you're really not from here, are you son? I have you know, you can take the bottle, it's free!" He says with a smile behind the astronaut visor of his, and I tilt my head to a side with a question mark above my head.

"Oh, really? I don't get it." I ask him, and yet again he smiles and laughs calmly, like a grandfather would, which is funny because I know neither of my grandparents.

"As Mrs. A would say: 'when you have something good to share, share it, and so the world will become a happier place'! Don't worry about the money, son. After all, Mrs. A pays for all the food and restocks in here, plus the electricity and water too! So take it to your heart's content!" Okay, now this is really freaking me out a bit. Did he just say that Mrs. A pays for all the bills from this convenient store, from the food all the way to the supplies? This would be nice outside, but here only makes me a bit on the lookout. First she's a terrorist, now she's a Good Samaritan? What gives?

"Is it really okay for me to take that? I would feel bad, but I've learnt that recusing kindnesses is a bit rude, so okay." I said while snapping the cap of the bottle and taking a sip out of it. It still a bit strange to pick something and not pay for it, but as Mr. Hebihara said, recusing something is the same as spitting on a plate. Even so, I turned to the old man in the space suit. "So, this Mrs. A sounds like a very important person here, right? I also saw that she founded this place. So, care to share some history?"

"Not at all, dear." He laughs yet again. "You see, Mrs. A is one of the few people on this Earth that have the seal of approval of the heavens themselves. She abandoned her own husband and even her daughter in order to pursue a step closer to heaven, and so she founded Daten city, a place where we can only assume it's paradise on Earth! She gathered her own followers, me included, and built this city from scraps, providing food, energy, electricity and a chance for all of us, who thought God was dead. She asks for nothing, only love and acceptance of our God, and only for the fact that this city is built around herself without any exterior help is a clear sign that she's the one sent by God to guide us to heaven, amen!"

"Huh, how interesting." I murmur to myself so he wouldn't catch my sarcasm. Even so, abandoning her own family and building an entire city from scraps with just a few followers? The most impressive, but also frightening. She probably has a Sacred Gear just like me, or she does have the power of God by her side. If so, what does she want from me? What's this deliverance all about? It makes no sense, no sense at all. I just have to keep going, I guess. I drink the last sips from my water and throw it in a nearby trashcan. "Thanks for the bottle of water, old man, and also for the beautiful story about your city. If you don't mind me asking, where can I find the cathedral?"

"Oh, just follow the road to the heart of the city, there is no way for you to get lost." He says with a hand wave and a smile. I think I already heard those directions before, but It's always nice to have a little recall once in a while. I wave him one last goodbye as I exited the place. What a nice fellow, I hope everybody else here in just as good. "Goodbye, sonny. Have a nice night and may God be with you, amen."

"Yeah, yeah. Goodnight, old man." I said to him, taking my way to the said heart of the city.

Noting right now, I have only myself to blame for this whole ordeal: reaching the said heart of the city with still not a single sign of life around, the cathedral was the skyscraper I saw outside, pointing out to the moon. In all honesty, the single tallest building in here it's the said cathedral, which wouldn't be out of place near Notre dame, being reflected on a white light only to shine a pale tone of golden, mosaic glasses all over the windows and a single bell on top of all of it. I must admit, it's quite a view for the sore eyes, and all things considered I couldn't expect less from a city such as this. But even so, I'm still here on a mission, and so I reached for the wooden door with golden knobs and I was ready to take a step inside and meet this Mrs. A woman, but suddenly…

"WAAAAAAAAAH…!"

 ***BAM!***

"Whoa…!" Before I could even pull the door to face the interior of the said cathedral, I saw someone being literally jetted away from inside, a middle-aged man of light brown short hair and violet eyes wearing priest clothes, sliding his way all the way to a light pole, where he hit his head and landed there. I quickly came to his rescue, picking my jacket so I could try to find anything that might help him in some way. "Oh crap. Hey sir, are you okay? What happened?!"

"I… I…!"

 ***BANG!***

"Don't worry about Shidou, Mr. Kurokami, he's just an nuisance in our little ordeal." But before this Shidou guy could say anything, I hear the sound of a gun shooting, and out of nowhere, a bullet passed right next to me and hit him in the heart. And there he was, immobile, presumely dead. I turned around and saw that masked woman, Mrs. A holding that same pistol I received. I stood up and turned to her. "Don't worry, it's a magical light bullet that will only put him out of commission since its pretty light against humans. We just need to time to talk about business, right? Now, Mr. Kurokami, welcome to Daten city…"

"You… Are you Mrs. A?" I asked. All I heard by her side was a small laugh, as she now reaches for her mask in order to remove it from her face, revealing from inside the face of a middle-aged western woman of tired facial features, golden hair and emerald green eyes. She smiles.

"Yes, I am Mrs. A, the founder of this whole city. But since you're here, we can drop the formalities. Call me… **Arianna Argento**."

"Arianna… Argento?"

"Yes, now, Prodigal son of the Grigori… Give me _deliverance_."


	14. Deliverance, Challenger last trip

**And look who's back! Nothing to lose here but a new chapter into Kokuto's upcoming journey against Asia's mother! Or maybe her sister or a distant parent, I might not know, but it can be answered this chapter. But at least this arc was quite short considering all the ideas put into it. I hope you all like the conclusion and read 'til the end, because no matter what, this story means a lot, and your thoughts and Ideas even more, so I hope you all like the chapter and don't forget to R &R, because kindness makes an author very happy!**

 **DxD does not belong to me, but Ichiei Ishibumi and it's respective magazines. The OC's are mine, tho.**

* * *

"Tell me, Kurokami... Do you fear death?"

"What? Well, dying might suck, but I'm not afraid of it."

"I see. Another question: Do you fear killing?"

"I… I don't know. I never did it, not even with ants, or small animals on the park near my house. I don't know if I do."

"Good to hear. You look like a pretty decent young man, despite being the son of… A fallen angel."

"I'm me, and my father's my father."

"Hahah, true, true, I apologize for my rudeness. Now, I ask you again: How about you give me deliverance."

"And now it's my time to ask: Why are you asking those questions?" I said, putting my backpack down so I could pick from it the pistol and the bladeless hilt that she apparently gave me. Her emerald green eyes shine brighter with the sight of those, as I picked the gun and aimed at her, the hilt being on my other hand. "Does it have anything to do with those gifts you gave me? Why did you give them to me in the first place? Do you… Want me to kill what? To shoot what, then double-tap what? I seriously… Do want those answers."

"…"

And now silence, from both sides. I might appear calm on the outside, but on the inside, I'm having a slight mental breakdown. Here I am, at the heart of a city with a said divine blessing, but with no soul around, an unconscious man by my feet and now pointing a gun at the apparent ruler of this place, a tall, middle-aged foreign woman of green eyes and blond hair which calls herself by the name of Arianna Argento. This woman, this leader, I saw her on T.v. coldly murder an entire platoon of people without a second thought to then call for me, and now that I'm here, we're stuck in this stalemate, not a single word being muttered, yet I feel like I'm being strangled by her presence alone. One, two, I take a deep breath and bite my lips in anticipation, waiting for an answer that didn't seem to come. One, two, another deep breath, and nothing from both sides.

I try to maintain my frown, but my hand and the gun in it are shaking, and I'm not even with my finger on the trigger. No, I'm not going to shoot, I just want to know why those are with me, why did she send those to me at all. In the end, she smiles, I bite my lower lip one more time…

"Mr. Kurokami… Kokuto, dear. I created this city in order to serve as a paradise, a model of peace and unity, a place where the poor, the unwanted, the lost and the betrayed could gather their broken pieces and live a quiet, pleasant life. There are no ulterior motives behind it, it is just what I do. I've dedicated my life to help those in need in the name of my God. I even abandoned my husband and child and travelled around the world in order to pursuit such goal. Helping those in need and doing everything in order to appease my God. Isn't that the purpose in humanity? Help others in order to reach salvation? In order to reach… Heaven?" She reaches her hands for the night sky decorated with the full moon, as if she's praying something up there, I can only assume it's God himself or something, but then she turns back to me and extends a hand for me, like she's offering me it. "Indeed, even in this hapless, cruel and rotten world such as this, kindness and mercy shine brighter than any star, even the Sun itself paling in comparison. As a fellow human, a fellow inhabitant of this cruel yet beautiful world, why won't you extend your kindness for me, as well?"

"What do you want, Mrs. Argento? You caused a ruckus just to call for my attention, and here I am, so please tell me, what do you really want from me?" I said to her back, my finger slightly tinting and sliding all the way down to the trigger, as if I was waiting for something to happen, but I couldn't myself to do it. I just want answers, none of this killing stuff, just answers. She looks at me, then at the gun, back at me.

"Kokuto, dear, do you think that killing people, even when they're infidels, is punishable? Do you think even someone like me should be held by its crimes against nature, against life itself, even by the name of the Good God from above? The Good God above doesn't think so…" She smiles, but then I notice something: her smile starts to wither away, her lips tremble, her eyes start to water, and her extended hand faltered to point at the ground, where tears were now falling. "The good God above doesn't think so, Kokuto, the Good God above doesn't think so! I killed over a thousand people, 4,000 lives, vanishing in a second like dust in the wind, yet I'm forgiven of such act because they were heretics. I wasn't excommunicated or punished for my actions. They did forgive me, but it's never enough, never enough. I left my dear husband and child, wandered around the world helping others, gave myself to our Good God and its teachings, but it's never enough, never enough! Why? Why? Kokuto, the son of the fallen child of God, why is it never enough? I pledged myself to God, so why is it never enough?"

"Mrs. Argento, I don't understand a thing, and honestly you're starting to scare me." I said to her. Mrs. Argento's face wouldn't let go of her own smile, but all the melancholy and despair were right there on her face, approaching me with her grief, coming a bit too close for my tastes. In the end, she picks me by the hand that was carrying the gun and pointed at the middle of her crying eyes. The stare almost made me back away, but she craves her fingers on my hand to put me in one place, barrel still aiming at her brains. "Mrs. Argento…!"

"Please. I didn't want to end up like that. I killed all those people for nothing, God still loves me no matter what I do, even if I'm such a garbage human being, but even so I can't get away from him or the church!" Her pleas were now akin to screams as her fingers craved even more onto my skin to the point she was hurting me and little by little dragging my pointer finger at the trigger, putting the barrel so much into her own skin I thought she wanted to stick it into her skull. "Please, Kokuto… I thought that becoming one of them would be a blessing, it would be an honor! As being the first reincarnated angel, I would be taking the first step further into being a believer and a servant of God, I would become just like Apollo XI, just like Neil Armstrong! But I was wrong! Kokuto, I saw them die! I saw them kill them for their experiments! Please, I can't do this anymore! You have to end this before they find me and try their sick attempt at Evil Pieces! You're the son of a woman and a watcher, you have no alignment to either heaven or hell! You're the only one who can do this without causing a war! So do it! Do it now! Give me deliverance from this cruel joke!"

"Like I said, Mrs. Argento! I have no idea what are you talking about!" I screamed back at her, doing my best so I could shake her off from me! What is this all about? Soldier of God?! Sick attempt at Evil Pieces?! First reincarnated angel?! I know this might be too much, so I have to sit down and have a major time out before my head explodes! Is she talking about being the first human-turned-angel, just like Saji being a human-turned-devil? So why is she so afraid, I thought someone as 'holy' or 'blessed' as her would be elated with that kind of news, to be the first ever human who turned into an angel, but no, she's freaking out right now, tears down her eyes and lips plastered on a sick, twisted and trembling smile! I have no idea how to deal with this!

"Please, son of the Arrogance of God, bring me deliverance! I want to be free from this cruel joke! I am not Apollo XI, I'm just a crash dummy of God! I'm just their experiment of faith, cursed to be a guinea pig for the greater Good! So please, I can't withstand it anymore! I… I just want it to stop… Please…" And the grasp around me suddenly loosens and she starts to adopt a more melancholic, defeated expression. I have now enough concentration and power to shake her grasp away from me, but she still walks into the barrel and aim it at her forehead. "Please, I'm just… Tired. God forgives, God chooses, but I can't do this anymore… I can't do it… So please… Free me from this nightmare… Kokuto Kurokami…"

"Mrs. Argento…"

 ***BATA BATA BATA BATA BATA BATA!***

"What the...?" Out of nowhere I hear the sound of helicopters' rotors into the sky, and from the heavens above I see a flash of light, no, multiple flashes of light descend upon Mrs. Argento, as both our attention shifts to a true army of rotorcrafts were hovering right above our heads, all of them colored white with a golden cross printed on the side. Oh, that smarts! Now what?! Mrs. Argento's face went from melancholic to pure horrified as she moved away from me and started to run away into the church!

" **NO! I DON'T WANNA! I DON'T WANNAAAAAAAA…! LEAVE ME ALONE, YOU FALSE PROPHETS! THIS IS NOT LOVE! THIS IS NOT LOOOOOVE…!** " She screams as she would plea for her life as I stay here, dumbfounded by the sudden change of events in mere seconds. I didn't even have time to think or react fast enough, I could see a bunch of men in priest robes and gas masks roping themselves down and landing from the helicopters and enter the sacred facility armed with rifles of all kinds! What the hell is all of that, some kind of catholic black ops?! One of them notices me and the fallen guy next to me, and pushes his mask away to show an elderly man with blank eyes and wrinkling yet determined face.

"I'm glad that you discovered the location of subject Arianna Argento before it was too late, Shidou. I shall call for the healers to help you with your wounds. As for you…" The old man then turns to me as I hide my weapons behind my back and throw them away from my grasp, adopting a frown now. "… Who are you supposed to be? Another inhabitant of this unfaithful city? Perhaps another of Argento's offspring besides the holy maiden? If so, I hope you're not as sacrilegious as your mother."

"Sacrilegious…?" I parroted his words. Wait, this lady, sacrilegious? I know that she burnt an entire stadium full of innocent people, but she did say that the church and the God above forgave her for that, so what is it, now? Without losing a bit, the old man turned around into the darkness of the church inside, which I could hear the screams and pleas of Mrs. Argento as more and more holy black ops went inside and in the end dragged her outside, tossing her crying and struggling self on the ground, held in place by those same man.

"This woman… This blasphemous woman… Tried to escape the greatest honor that someone like her would ever receive from the heavens above as the first step towards the evolution of us, believers. She, who should hold her head up high, is now crawling onto the ground as a sinner who refuses her own destiny! This changes today." He claims with a finger pointing at her who could no longer fight against her harassers. In the end, that same old man picked from inside his own robes a syringe with some blue substance in the barrel. He squirts some of the content away, and then aimed at Mrs. Argento's arm! Just by looking at it, she started to scream and struggle again, but the arms holding her were too many as she didn't have any change before going onto the ground again, as the priest injected her with the said blue substance, making her finally calm down and pass out onto the ground. Once she was down, the men lifted her and started to carry her away from one of the helicopters. The man turns away, lifting his own man on the ground and sighing. "Men, take her away back to the research lab, I'll take Shidou to the medical facility and treat his wounds. If this dose doesn't have any effect, we'll apply two more, and three more if that doesn't work…"

"Wait, what are you going to do with her?" I asked him, reaching for him. He simply snuffs at me without any second thoughts, walking towards one of his helicopters.

"That's none of your concern, this is private church matters, and if we need secrecy to protect civilians such as yourself from it, I suggest that you turn away and forget what you just witnessed." He says simply, but I continued to follow him and his partner across the place, not satisfied with this answer! I even tried to reach a hand for him.

"With all due respect, you did not answer my question at all, S-…!"

 ***PUNCH!***

"Go home, kid. Otherwise you'll be my enemy and the church's." And without even looking at me he back-punched me, the impact and scare being enough to make me lose balance all fall onto my knees. I spit a bit of blood, and tried to stand up, only to look up and notice his bloodshot eyes shining across the darkness of the night. "Stay down, and forget what you saw. Take that as a warning."

"As if. As much as I'd like to, Mrs. Argento…!"

 ***DOOOOOOON!***

"What the…?!" And I was cut yet again when something even more fantastic happened before my eyes: from the insides of the helicopter that was ready to take off where they were holding Mrs. Argento, I saw a bright, blinding light of pure blank, and after it, the sound of destruction and the heat of fire. Out of nowhere, something akin to a large, thick and deformed white tree trunk emerged from inside the rotorcraft, destroying it from inside and crushing whoever was with her inside! And it didn't stop there, the tree grew and grew, crashing and burning everything around it as it ascended to the heavens, the figure of a branch shaped like a woman with more branches as angelic wings on her back, all contorted in a painful form that would reach sky high and the same time root itself deep on the ground.

"Why? Why do you break me? Have you no pity whatsoever? I was once a woman, and now I have changed to a tree, your hands should be more merciful, even if I had been a soul of a serpent~!" I could hear it, I could still hear Mrs. Argento's voice coming from the branches and the main root, like echoes floating across the wind. Am I going mad? The priest that was once carrying the other guy from before instead runs towards the said tree woman, fall on his knees, and starts to praise it.

"Oh Lord! Hallelujah! Hallelujah! The experiment is going as God planned! Powder of the Evil Pieces, holy water, light element and the light of angels, bring forth the new step towards the gardens of heaven! Come forth, new race, reincarnate as an angel, and join our beloved Father and archangels in heaven!" He starts to supplicate, tears of blood running down his eyes and face plastered in a joyful expression of pure bliss, not even noticing the shadow hovering above him as a new branch would grow forward towards him. I tried to reach him and duck him to a safer position, but it was too late, the branch was already onto him! "Hallelujah! Hallelujah! Praise our lord Michael for this opportunity to transform mere mortals into servants of the one True God! Praise Brother Galilei for his research and attempts to recreate the soiled demonic invention for this holy and noble cause! Praise them all, praise them all, for this shall end the war between heaven and hell! PRAISE BE ALL OF THEM, AMEN…!"

 ***CRASH!***

…

And now it was over. The man who was praising the monstrosity that himself helped come forth was no more, instead, a scarlet stain on the floor, crushed by one of the pale branches of the ever-growing tree that was blooming at the heart of Daten city, destroying all in its path, the foreign helicopters, the church that so proudly used to withstand as the center, the heart of that city, and the several houses that were all the same, inhabited by the lost and despaired with no place to go, now being destroyed by the endless rush of divine branches from a thing that was once a woman, making countless man, women, children and old wearing those same spacesuits run for their lives as that little piece of earth was now being engulfed on the cold, lifeless embrace of a divine tree, little by little being strangled into the putrid womb constructed not by the divine, but man, man who called themselves holy and pursuing a sacred goal…

" _Why? Why do you break me? Have you no pity whatsoever? I was once a woman, and now I have changed to a tree, your hands should be more merciful, even if I had been a soul of a serpent~!"_ Would chant the creature made out of blank branches and trunks shaped like a woman, tears of blood trailing from the holes that were once eyes and branches shaped like wings sprouting from her back. An angel? No, only a mockery of such, a bad joke, that she would never laugh for, only suffer. "" _Why? Why do you break me? Have you no pity whatsoever? I was once a woman, and now I have changed to a tree, your hands should be more merciful, even if I had been a soul of a serp-…!_ "

 ***BANG!***

"…?!"

" _I… Must be cruel, only to be kind; thus bad begins, and worse remains behind_." Fumes coming from the end of the barrel, and into the chest of the tree woman, a glimpse of light, shining brighter than a star among the whiteness of her skin, producing the same smoke from before, incrusted into her trunk. The tree that was once Arianna Argento looked at her newfound wound, and looked back at me. My vision is blurry, but my grasp is firm. I didn't know what she mean by wanting deliverance, but now I know. With my finger on the trigger, and the other hand firmly grasping on the hilt, I look forward, sniff a little and then braced myself. "Here I go, Mrs. Argento. I shall give you deliverance. Deliverance from this hell called 'your life'. From this hell that people who call themselves servants of God put you on in the first place!"

 ***SCREECH!*** But now that beast was no longer Mrs. Argento. Out of the sudden a pale branch appeared out of nowhere and slapped the gun away from my grasp, making it roll away from me! I was about to run into a direction, but I felt a cold presence coming! On the nick of time I jumped back and dodged a spear of branches that came from the ground, continuing to run backwards as more and more of those white spears would sprout in my direction! I need to calm down, I need to focus! I have to reach the gun and press that bullet even further into her body, or else… ***STAB!***

"Ugh…!" I groaned in pain, feeling the worst wound I've ever received in the shape of a flying stake that came out of nowhere! I look up, and from the upward branches I saw several stakes now raining down on me! I have no way to dodge those in time and avoid the spears from above simultaneously, so I can only cross my arms and block all those upcoming projectiles, all of them hitting my hands, arms, shoulders and ripping parts of my skin! This hurts, this hurts like hell, but I have to endure it, for the sake of her deliverance! I back and back as I try, doing my best so I can reach for the gun, being the only way I could defend myself was to pick the hilt in my possession and use it to block the falling stakes! Why didn't she just give me a sword to begin with! This is so…! "Ah…! The hilt…!"

 ***DROP!***

 ***CLICK!***

 ***ZOOOM~!***

"What…?" And for all the nonsense that has happened to me throughout the week, to the point nothing should be able to surprise me anymore, I couldn't help but gasp in surprise as accidently the hilt escapes my grasps, hits the floor and, after the sound from the click of a button, a light blade emerges from where it should be, emanating a bright shine shaped like a double-edged sword! So that thing works on a switch! That smarts!

Whatever, I picked the now bladed hilt and used it to block all the upcoming projectiles! I'm getting closer and closer to the holy gun! One for the kill, and the second for a double-tap! So this mean I got only one more shot! I block, I run, I get stabbed and pierced, but I finally reach for the gun! One final stake makes its way towards me, but before it could hit me I dodge it, instead picking the blade and hitting it up high, into my direction! I extend my arm, I reach for the gun, pointer finger at the trigger, ready to fire, I just need to aim and that place and then…!

 ***VOOSH!***

"What the…?!" But before I could do anything, a larger, spikier and sharper sprout emerged from the ground and aimed right at me where my heart should be! I tried to block it, that thing coming faster than a bullet in my direction, using the sword of light, but the moment the blade touched against the branch coming from below, it shattered in a million pieces of light, bypassing its fragile composition and then…

 ***STAB!***

 ***ROAR!*** It all happened in a second, less than that, in an attosecond, but that branch coming from below just shattered my blade and in a smooth move penetrated my skin and pierced through my chest, impaling me through the left side.

Blood comes everywhere, I vomit a bit of blood and bile as some of it drops on the white branch that pierces me where my heart should be. I feel nothing else, just my own essence being dragged away from my body, as particles of light of what used to be my sword dance around me, and the grasp around my gun falters. I can still hear it, I can still hear Mrs. Argento calling for me, asking desperately for deliverance, but I have no more strength to lift my weapon, and I have nothing to use Schrodinger with. I wonder… If I can still…

 ***CLICK!***

 ***BANG!***

 ***Ting Ting Ting Ting!***

 ***BAM!***

"…!" And then it happened. Using the last remains of strength I still got, I slightly turned my hand upwards and pulled the trigger. From this angle, I wouldn't be able to shot where I wanted, never indeed, but then I didn't shoot at it. Instead, I shot at the fragments of light still hovering above me and like expected, their reflect the bullet all over the place, one piece after another, the sound of them shattering echoing across the night, until I heard the sound of something hard getting hit. The sound of a bullet penetrating something hard.

 **Lucky~** **⋆.**

A gasp, and moment of silence, and suddenly the branch that pierced me started to wither away in an instant. Wither? Rather, it pulverized in the thin air, and from here I fell onto the ground with a loud *THUM!* on my back, looking instead at the skies above, once covered in branches now becomes clearer as their open space for flocks of withering nature, white as snow, falling all over the town. In the end, the tree at the heart of the city was no more, only white, pure as snow, around all of us. I wait one, two seconds, and then I have enough strength to stand up and cough up some blood. I look at the gaping hole on the left side of my chest. No doubt, if it had hit my heart, I would be dead by now…

And if you're wondering why and how I'm still alive, you are not paying attention at all.

"Uh… Uh…" I hear those pleas among the snowing area of moss and dust, and walking to said direction, I notice that in the heart of the city, in the heart of all the conflict, the ground zero, it was Arianna Argento, or at least what survived of her: only her nude torso, no arms or legs or even her lower half, instead being replaced by dried-up roots. Despite her current position, or because of it, her lips, dried and also withering away, were curved in an upward arc. "So, is this… Death. I feel no fear, yet this is death."

"Yeah, I guess. It's over, Mrs. Argento." I said with a low tune. Her eyes, dull and colorless like dried roots, look up to the sky, and small tears start to come from her eyes, as she tries to reach for the heavens with her left stub, but then it falls into the ground a few seconds later, pulverizing the remaining of flesh… Branch, there.

"I… I always thought that… By serving and doing deeds for the sake of God, I would be able to be absolved from my past sins in the name of Him… Leaving my child and husband behind… Giving everything I've ever earned for the poor and miserable… Taking the lives of many considered unworthy… But in the end, even with God, sinners only act for the sake of their sins, and I am… No different. I wonder if they would ever forgive me." She starts to soliloquy, as I notice that the rest of her body, just like the tree from before, starts to disappear, from her stubs, to her edges, all started to vaporize. I tried to reach for her, but then she turns her eyes for me, startling me a little. "I'm so sorry that you had to act like such. I'm sure that, in different circumstances, I would've loved to meet you… Even make a better date… Than this one. Just kidding… Hohohoh, it was such a bad joke…"

"Yeah." I muttered, sniffing and trying to get rid of the blur in my eyes. I pick my gun yet again and aim at her, only to pull the trigger and hear only a click from the empty weapon. No bullets, only for a double-tap indeed. I hear a sigh, and she closes her eyes. Suddenly, from the left side of her chest, from her breast, I see a small vine ascend upwards, and from it, I saw a blank bud, which then bloomed into a silver rose.

"My soul is now yours. I was… A wicked, misguided woman, a disgusting human with no redemption, but who gave birth to a saint maiden, my only pride, my only love. If I… Could do it again, to give life to a better existence than my own, I entrust it to you, Son of Watcher, the spawn of God's own arrogance." She says, her eyes still closed as her body slow would wither away in snow-like flocks. I reach for the silver rose and pluck it away from its vines, picking its thorny vine with no problem on my hands. "Now, I bid you goodbye, Kokuto Kurokami. Take my essence, my love, and walk forward towards the path you must…"

And once I did it, Mrs. Argento's body now turns into dust, and ascended to the skies, only leaving tears of white, which would fall onto the ground and sprout from the more and more silver roses. In the end, a small sphere of light ascended from the dusted corpse, and flew away, over the moon. The soul of the false angel, whose pure heart only had truths…

…

" _Luvah_!" I called for the name of my now weapon, and out of the sudden the rose in my hands turned into a slender, tall silver scythe. Without losing any second, I ran towards the garden of silver roses and started to swing it left and right, cutting the flowers one by one, reaping their heads away like death itself, only taking care only a few would remain. One by one, flowers would fall, other would stand tall and shiny under the moonlight, as I graciously swung that instrument made out of the soul of a maiden, yet the material of heaven's itself, like a Sacred Gear, in the end, I tapped the scythe on the ground, which flew away, turning in the air like a cyclone before turning back into a rose. It fell, I picked it in midair, and put it in my mouth as I clapped my hands and made a pose, seeing the little homage I made to ascending soul of Mrs. A: a giant cross made out of silver roses, with the initials A. A. on them. " _Now cracks a noble heart. Goodnight, sweet maiden; and flights of angels sing thee to thy rest_."

I might be only half-fallen angel, but if God doesn't let you in heaven, I shall. For I am Kokuto Kurokami, the man who always has fate by his side. And your fate is not hell…

...

"Ugh…" And I snap back from my little reverie and put Luvah away only to find, among the debris of the destroyed helicopters and buildings, a survivor, the same middle-aged of light brown hair and wearing priest clothes, I think his name was Shidou or something. I was quick to help him away from the destruction that would've crushed him otherwise. After a few slaps on his face, he comes back to his senses. "Ugh… You… You're…"

"Hello there, Mr. Shidou or whatever. I'm glad that you're okay." I simply said. At least he's now out of danger, and I can take a deep breath now, despite the fact that the gaping hole in my chest and my pierced left lung making it hard for me to do it without spitting some blood. He looks at me, blinks and then tries to stand sit, only to fall on his back.

"You better rest, Mr. Shidou. Even a man of God is still a man, just flesh and bones and one life with no continues or extra credits. Besides, after that adventure, you better go home and be a family man." I joked, but a scowl ended up in his face, but for my chargrin.

"You… You're not human, are you?" He asks.

"And what if I'm not, what are you going to do about it?" You might think that I wanted to sound rude with that statement and question, but I actually don't want to. I lift a hand in apology for the sudden rudeness. "I'm sorry for my rudeness, but yes, I'm not completely human, but if you want to know what part is not the human one, that will cost you some extras."

"Tch, cheeky, aren't you." He spits in defeat, letting himself finally rest on the flower-covered floor. I think that's all he can handle for now, but I can no longer feel any hostility coming from him, only depression and bore. So much bore. He turns his eyes to me. "So… Argento… She's dead, isn't she?"

"Yeah, quite dead. Sorry to say that." I lowered my head, looking at the small homage I made from the silver roses she sprouted. Mr. Shidou looks there, and sighs, looking now at the sky, a small tear escaping his eyes.

"Maybe it was for the best. After all that research, all the pain, our… Devotees who would be recruited for experiments, we still cannot copy devils and their Evil Pieces, but if this takes away the lives of many, maybe it's not worth it at all…" He mumbles to himself, turning back at me. "So thank you, for giving her some rest. I hope that, whatever she is right now, she's having a more pleasant dream than here."

"You're maybe right." I sigh back. I look around, and see a briefcase lying around the debris of the broken helicopter. I pick it from the ground, dust it a few times and then open it, only to see some small light bullets from my previous gun, another gun and a few of those bladeless hilts of those lightsabers. I guess I'll be taking those, for protection and maybe as another prize after that crazy night, but I need to ask something first. I close the briefcase, turn to Mr. Shidou. "Hey, , do you mind if I take those with me? I promise I won't misuse them, I just want something to protect myself. After that crazy night? I think I should arm myself with something…"

"…!" he tries to answer for me, but suddenly he shouts out and his entire body trembles, making him lay on the ground once more, twitching a little like a legless cockroach. Another sigh of defeat, and then he turns away. "Y'know what, I don't know who or what you are, but you kind of reminds of a brat my daughter loved, and while he was a little lewd guy, he was pretty sweet. I guess that, basing on that, I can trust you. Go on ahead, keep it, I'll say that it was destroyed during the rampage."

"Well, thank you." I said, putting the briefcase on the floor and now sitting next to Mr. Shidou, looking at him with a bit of curiosity. He arches an eyebrow in surprise and doubt, wordlessly asking what was I doing. "So, Mr. Shidou, do you want me to call the ambulance for your wounds? I know they don't look serious, but you never know. Not to mention, I think everybody evacuated the area, so nobody else will look for you here."

"No, don't involve normal civilians into this. Once they notice my absence, the church will send some fellow my ways to check on me. It might take a while, but they'll take care of me and put everything in secrecy. No worries." He talks, and that someone soothes the mood and put me a little ease. So they'll send something to help here, that's nice, but until then, better stay around and take care of him. "So, what are you waiting for? Go away before they find you and asks questions. I have nothing to say, neither does you, so you better not be around…"

"I'll stay here a little more. God knows what will happen to you between now and then. I'll be around and take care of you for a while if you don't mind. You don't mind, do you?" I turn to him, and he gasps in surprise, opening and closing his mouth, like a fish would. In the end, he let out his third and final sigh of defeat, lays on the ground and look at the stars. Yeah, something even worse could happen now, so better stay sharp. So here we are, under the pale moonlight, looking at the stars until someone comes.

"You're… You're pretty sweet too, whoever you are. You really reminds me of that brat."

"Why, thank you." I don't know who this brat is, but this compliment makes me a bit happy. Compliments are always nice.

In the end, it took just a few minutes for some form of life to come by, and by that time, I hid myself among the debris with my new briefcase and the white rose/Scythe Sacred Gear made out of a soul and divine-cursed flesh, out of the city. As I witnessed, Daten city was no more, completely isolated from the rest of the world and in quarantine by 'religious matters', only me, Mr. Shidou and a few other people know what happened, but in the end, I guess this story is better to be forgotten. Now, to my lonely walk back to Kuoh…

As I walked, I saw a small glimpse of light in the sky, accompanied by the moon, a bright new star. I want to believe that it is Arianna Argento, but this is only wishful thinking…


	15. Drunk Maniac God, the blind madness

**Hey there! Guess who's back after finishing that little arc with Arianna? I had a little of author's block during the writing for this new arc; but in the end, with something in Mind, I've decided what I wanted to do, and so I did it. As always, the chapter is an introduction, but this one is kinda special now: the events now are happening alongisde canon. Specifically, Issei's first encounter with fallen angels and his little... Surprise with Rias. No more revelations from here, if you want more, just read the chapter and I have you all have a good read! Don't forget to R &R!**

 **P.S.: This chapter, despite being lighter, actually has some subjects that might be a little too heavy for some readers and the black humour that comes with it might be a little harsh, so the usual shtick: Don't like it? read it anyway and complain about it down below. It's not like you have anything else better to do in this situation, right? That aside, good read.**

 **DxD belongs to Ishibumi and its respective magazines. All the OC's are mine, though.**

* * *

 _I_ _have no problem with my little hobby of a sorts, I have all sorts of fun while doing it. It's not a clean, stable or even honest hobby of course, but that's all that I have, and of course, life is never boring with it. The situation just has to present itself, and then..._

 ** _*ZIP~!*_**

 _Simple as that, no less no more. Of course, what's the fun in that when it's so easy for the likes of me? When I say I have fun doing it, I really mean it. Sometimes, a single target is not enough for me, so I end up relieving myself in the way through as well. Bystanders, children, women, men, elders, people that has no relation or guilt become a target, and I end up aiming at anyway because I get bored very easily. What can I say? I'm a very agitated person, I crave some extra excitement even during my little hours between one session and another._

 _There was one special target which was a single mother, who had everything that one would want: a beautiful house, two beautiful children, a high-social life and money. Of course, I could just take her for myself on her way to work without any problems and be done with it, but what fun that could have. I'm also an artist of a sorts, so I would have to take special care for this little special session so I could fully enjoy myself. When she was away for work, I kicked the door open to her house were her family was, and started the preparations…_

 _Ah~, sweet Martha, she had a mole on a very special place, that kinda turned me on, so I did it before ripping her innocence to shreds and took photos of her defeated, crying self, which became another relief for my… Special needs._

 _Oh, poor Paul. Such a scared, lost little kid, couldn't help his sister who was pleading for her life, only hiding in the closet and wetting himself just like a boywould. Hearing him cry for his own holes was a joy, though, breaking him little by little, just like I did with his big sister who was supposed to protect him…_

 _And for Susan, who was just coming home, I had a special treatment just for her and her pristine, soft skin. When my dear Susan came home, I surprised him with the best confetti party someone could ever ask for. Of course, being greeted by the empty shells of those who you so dearly cherished your whole life, all dripping on tears, sweat and love juices, and with the walls decorated with such futile struggle, she didn't seem to like all of my efforts to make this target special. Such a pity, such a pity. I ambushed her from behind and did my thing with her soft, mature and plump body, as someone should, and then leaving the three behind, alive of course, after all, I'm not a murderer. I guess the destination can be as good as the trip, as some would say. Like I said, not an honest, clean or good hobby, but sometimes, a man's gotta do what a man's gotta do._

 _And who can blame me? I am the shadowless man, a man with no reflection or identity, and so, I can take full control over this power of mine, the power I stole. I have no need for such, yet these encounters are what makes me feel alive, spreading my love all over these places, whatever people like it or not. I am a man with needs, and the whole world is here to satisfy them._

 _I am the modern day Bacchus, the lover of many, the intoxicator, the God of earthen desires…_

 _And I just found myself a couple new targets for my entertainment…_

* * *

"Yawn~…!"

"Yawn~…"

"Uwaaah~…!"

"Uwaaah~…"

"Yuki, I'm starting to think you're making fun of me by doing this."

"Hoh, so you're sharper than I thought, Kokkun. But again, you're so heartless for making such bold assumptions, you'll make me cry." And Yuki makes a pouty face but still with those same morose eyes, as probably not as upset as one would find her after that speech. Not that I mind either. She lifts her hand and tries to reach for my hair. "Of course, if you don't make me cry for putting that rose on your hair. What kind of man does that, anyway? This looks so silly on you…"

"Please, don't touch it. Don't disrespect those who rest, please." I say to her with a quick slap from her hand away so that she wouldn't touch my hair decoration of a white rose. Little does she know, but I hope she doesn't touch that subject so soon, anyway. Instead of anything else, she makes a pouty face, then

Here we are, taking our way to Kuoh academy while sharing some thoughts with each other. Actually, she's just mimicking me all the way to school, from the yawns to some gestures to adjust the flower on my hair, she's imitating me for some reason. Maybe she's mocking me, but for the meantime, it's hard to tell. The sharp-as-knives are earlier than I thought, and from all directions I can sense my back and head being pierced by the eyes of jealous classmates, all of them murmuring curses and plans to do with me and my locker.

I pay them no mind, of course, but as my eyes turn around to avoid the poison from them, I place my stare on Hyoudou, who walks much more like a zombie would, eyes at the distance and almost dragging his feet across the pavement. He seems lost and confused, if not a little sad, so I can only assume that his 'girlfriend' ended up being a scan as suspected, and reality hit him where it hurt the most. I kinda feel bad for him, but I can't help but to snicker at him. What a loser, to think someone would lose their time and effort to try to fool an idiot. I hide my own mouth so I wouldn't break into laughing and hurt his feelings, but this is just hysterical! Yuki notices my sudden laughs and turns at me.

"Is there something to matter, Kokkun? You're awfully cheerful for someone who's not an morning person, such as myself." She asks me with a pouty face, poking my cheek a few times in order to pick my attention or something. I simply turn to her.

"Nah, it's nothing, Yuki. I just saw someone really miserable today, and that made me laugh a little." I admitted, looking at the pale and emancipated face of a broken Hyoudou, who couldn't even stand straight before limping a bit. I feel bad for laughing, but it would be a waste not to. Maybe I can buy him some pity chocolates to console him and maybe laugh at his face up close, but not today, after all the hell that was last week, maybe hanging low for a while will help me in my mood, otherwise I'll do something I'll regret and he'll beat me silly. I turn my attention back at Yuki, and she sighs, mimicking my laugh in a deadpan tone.

"I see, I see. So Kokkun is not the pure child I thought he was, he also has a mischievous side, who would've thought." She dismisses my laughing pose and makes her own with a hand on her chin and while supporting one elbow on another. She then shrugs, blink a few times and winks a tired one for me. "Of course, that will never compromise our relationship in any way. After all, we all have secrets. It doesn't mean I won't be sad if you just so happens to hate me in secret."

"As if. You're my girlfriend, Yuki, I have no reason to hate you, even in secrecy." I shrug back, and in response he let out a small laugh, face still frozen on ice. I guess this is what I should expect from my not!girlfriend, after all, the only secret I must hide from her is the fact that I'm son of a fallen angel because those are lame, and she hates lame people, just like me. "I do have my secrets away from you, though…"

"And in no way they interest me in the slightest, Kokkun. You sure have some pretty delusions if you think those are important to me." She pouts yet again, and now I'm sure that she's just messing with me, so much for being my not!girlfriend, but then again, who am I to complain? Maybe except all those piercing stares I'm receiving from my classmates, of course.

 _'Die, die, Kurokami~!'_

 _'Look at him, showing off the beautiful Shirayuki in front of us just to mock us! Who the hell does he think he is?!'_

 _'Ah, all the things I'd do to that bastard if princess Yuki wasn't with him! Maybe tomorrow, maybe tomorrow…'_

 _'He'll see, his days are numbered…!'_

All in all in just another day in Kuoh academy, where everything sucks~…

" _KYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH_ …!"

And all of my thoughts and everyone's activities were suddenly halted as that chilling scream cut through the morning and froze anyone in the vicinity, like as if winter had come faster and stronger this year. Everyone but Yuki and a few some were not affected by it, but the majority, me included, couldn't stop looking around for the source of that sound, which we soon discovered was coming from Kuoh academy of all places. From either curiosity or excitement, we all rushed towards the gates of the school in order see the reason behind all the ruckus. In the end, however, some of us wished that question was never answered, as coming closer to Kuoh and into a crowd of people gathering, right in the middle of it…

There was a wounded, traumatized and naked young woman lying on the floor, body filled with scratches and bruises, her eyes brimming with tears and mouth agape in a distorted grimace of pain, shame and horror. Pure, distillated horror. However, the thing that everyone noticed and was pointing at all times was her intimate parts, which were dripping of… Love juices and blood, indicating the purity that no longer was there.

A girl was just violated in Kuoh academy.

"Oh my, Kokkun…" Yuki declares, looking down on the girl on the ground who would twitch and let out a wimp every second, while all the other girls would try to console and help her out. "I'm glad it wasn't me."

"Same." I fist-bumped with her with that comment, feeling bad for the girl in question, but being glad that it didn't happen to me or Yuki. I started to hear murmurs about the whole ordeal taken right around me, and even the perverted trio and some of the nastiest students of Kuoh academy seemed surprised and disgusted for what happened here. We all saw the girl being clutched by her classmates and dragged away from campus, leaving only a trail of lewd fluids and blood behind. Why do I have the feeling something very wrong is only starting to happen around? I don't know, this feeling just won't leave me alone. Oh, two of the perverted trio guys are around. I turn to them. "Hey, Sir Motohama, Sir Matsuda, you guys wouldn't happen to know what caused that horrible tragedy that befell our classmate, would you?"

"You think ill of us for no reason, Lord Kurokami. Even as perverts, we wouldn't descend as so low as to actually assault our classmates, although we watch some videos about it." One of them says, adjusting his glasses to look as cool and serious as possible, while the bald one cracked his knuckles a few times, letting out a sigh between his teeth. "Unfortunately, we also got no clues about what or who caused this tragedy to take place. But while we have each other as alibi, maybe Issei might know something since we haven't seen him since this weekend."

"Uh-huh, very well, men. I'll keep an eye over you guys too, though." And then we broke up our little conversation and split apart from one group to another. You would think those perverts would hate me just like the rest of the male population of Kuoh for having a girlfriend, but as I found out with Hyoudou, they can be quite helpful and even a little affable if you treat them with a bit of respect. Maybe perversion has rotten their brain to the point even a little bit of affability can tame them, or something. I turn to Yuki, and she had her hands on her pockets, taking a deep breath and blowing a whistle from her lips. She's pretty nonchalant about this whole thing, but then again, this is Yuki. "You want me to walk you to your class, Yuki? I mean, after what happened to that girl, we should be more careful about our surroundings."

 ***BAM!***

"Ugh…!" And before I could finish my line of thought, without even looking at me, Yuki elbowed me in the stomach for no reason! And with quite the punch too!, making me bend over and hold my stomach in pain! Oh my God, the pain from my fight with Mrs. Argento is still there, I can even feel some of my internal wounds opening up! I turn to Yuki. "What was that for, Yuki? I was just trying to help you…"

"I don't need your help, Kokkun. I know how to take care of myself. I'm not scared." But she didn't snark at me, not a single hint of a witty remark or some playfulness in her tone. Instead, she sounds a bit somber, too dark even for her. I tilt my head and my scowl turns into a confused grimace, but before I could say something, anything, she starts to walk away from me, into the classes. "I'm not scared, okay? I'm not scared, Kokkun. So mind your own business, and I'll mind mine, okay? Okay. I'm… I'm not scared."

And then she left me to fend off myself in the middle of the corridor while taking her way to her classroom. I wanted to reach for her and maybe figure what did I do wrong, but seeing from her trembling and fists, I figured it out in no time. Maybe that kind of accident does affect everybody. Maybe leaving her alone is the best choice for now, but better maintain an eye on her, just to be sure.

Even if she's my not!girlfriend, I wouldn't want her to fall into that mess, supernatural or not. I stood up, cleaned myself from the dust and took my own way to my class. Whatever happened, happened, and unfortunately I can't change anything, so my only bet for now is slow down and take a deep breath. Maybe it's just a hunch, an unfortunate but unrelated chain of events. The paranoia is high, but this might be only a coincidence, nothing to worry about. I reach for the flower on my head and take a deep breath in order to reach peace of mind. It's alright, it's fine, I just need to have a head between my shoulders and everything will be fine.

Boy, how I wanted that to be the case…

…

…

"Very well, class. I know you all love my classes, especially you, Kurokami, who is so diligent in sleeping during all of my lectures, but unfortunately due to what happened today with Miss Tsuchiya, classes are dismissed for today and until further notice. Also, the next person who complains about the sudden increase of transferred students here will be expelled without a second thought, got it?" And professor Tsukino waved his hand at us as a form to pass that sudden message without much trouble, while everybody now starts to talk between themselves and asking the events that transpired this morning. A girl with signs of molestation lying on school ground and with no evidences of a possible suspect? Certainly that would cause a ruckus and nobody would want to stay for long. Everybody starts to pack in, but before that, Professor Tsukino called for attention once more. "Another thing: we won't stop classes every time a girl is found raped in school grounds, so don't you think of picking a girl and ravaging her just so you and your classmates can have a free day. That's not how it works. So quit it."

"…"

"…"

"Holy shit, professor."

"I'm just saying. Nothing and nobody is sacred here, boys. Everybody knows." He shrugs, and knowing this is true, everybody just shuts up and starts packing again, me included. I take a look around and notice that other students are also packing things up and kicking it, so maybe this isn't the only place. Oh well, more time to do nothing. As I picked my things and headed to the exit I bump into Genshirou Saji, who was also heading somewhere. I elbow him on the sides, and he takes notice of me.

"Hey there, Saji. What a day, don't you think? So, what are you doing this afternoon since there're no classes for the rest of the day? What about that date we were planning the other day, is it still up? I hope it is, I know a very nice place." I laugh a bit with his and from him, only a scowl as he shifts to a new gear and heads first. No problem on my end, I drop my teasing side and keep up with him. "Just kidding, just kidding. I'm actually very worried about my own not!girlfriend, so maybe someone like might have any idea how to deal with this? Also, I'll pay good money for it to leave her alone or something, not that I care."

"Not now, Kurokami. This is a very serious matter and the student council needs me for that!" He declares, feet and steps steady without even looking at me. He looks serious, even more serious than the time we fought, so I'm sure that he means business. Or something, but anyway I continue to run besides him towards the Student Council room.

"Do you think there's something supernatural about it? Like, some kind of rapist ghost or something? That would be bad. Don't you think?" I comment, and he stops dead on his track to try to hit me, to no avail since I dodged to a side at the cost of almost losing my balance. He's fast, very fast, expected nothing from a devil. Even without having hit me, he continues his way to the student council room. And so the pursue continued. "That wasn't very nice, Saji. But you're right, I'm kinda making light of the situation, yet I ask you again: if there's anything I can do to stop this guy from hurting my not!girlfriend, I'll definitely do it… And because I'm kinda bored."

"That has no concern for you, Kurokami. If you want to help, just stay out of my way and let me work this out! Supernatural or not, this is something I can't just let go as a member of the student council and Sona Sitri's pawn!" He grits his teeth and practically runs away from me. "Whoever the perpetrator is, whatever he's a human, a demon or a God, Genshirou Saji won't allow him to live after soiling Kuoh academy and shitting on Sona Sitri's dreams!"

"…"

Holy crap, he actually sounded kinda cool just now.

And after that he leaves me eating dirt, walking towards the student council room and paying no more attention to anyone. He's motivated to the extreme it seems, and after that little speech, who am I to stay in his way, anyway? I better head home and leave this problem to the student council; they'll know what to do. Supernatural or not, this is too screwed up even for me, and since I'm not a target, better stay out of their way and let them do their thing. , either to spare me the trouble and not making them realize my true self, and with Saji taken care of, I guess this is the end on me. I'll head home, and tomorrow everything today will only remain as a bad nightmare of Kuoh. I believe in them…

Yep, there's no way for those powerful devil heirs to screw things up…

…

Those pansy-ass devils heirs found a way to screw things up…

The next morning in Kuoh academy, after a lonely and painful walk towards the school since Yuki refused to go due to yesterday's incident, I face alongside my peers another painful and traumatic sight: not only there is another nude violated victim lying on the ground in a puddle of blood, tears and bodily fluids, the girl from yesterday hanged herself on a nearby tree with tears down her eyes and a note saying that she 'didn't had the guts' or something. A team of paramedics took a while to help everyone too traumatized to move and move the bodies elsewhere. Among those near me witnessing that carnage, professor Tsukino sighed besides me, adjusting his glasses…

"Well, look at the bright side." He shrugged, and we all turned to him wordlessly asking where is the so-called bright side. "At least Tsuchiya can't say 'no' to you guys anymore."

"…"

"…"

"Oh my God, professor…"

"Oh c'mon, you buncha perverts. I bet all of you want to ravage her corpse like the animals you are since she won't move, just like a Dutch wife. I swear, all those horndog of students get on my nerves." And Professor Tsukino spits at us with contempt and hatred with giving a goodbye wave to get himself out of the picture, but not before literally spitting at me. "Fuck you, Kurokami."

"I'm honored for that, professor." I deadpanned, cleaning myself from the spit and breaking myself as the crowd dispersed itself to go on with their day, but that sense of dread just wouldn't go away from it, and things were getting darker and darker…

And that happened yet again and again and again during the week: A new girl would be found violated and crying near Kuoh academy and little by little fewer and fewer female students would show up in the fear of being the next victim. I would call for Yuki after every day just to make sure that she was fine, but from one day onwards, only her butler would pick up, saying that she was sick or something, and show me a photo of her on her pajamas, faking disease. I could only sigh in relief, my not!girlfriend was safe, but the same couldn't be said about those girls who dared to enter Kuoh for too long. They would vanish even with tighten security, and appear the next day covered in fluids, blood and tears. It started tragic, then proceeded to become a bit funny, and then tragic again…

The student council however was trying its best to cover up those nasty stories and compensate the victim's families with money and favours in exchange of secrecy, since apparently President Sona's dreams needed her to first prove her worth as an academic performant and leader, and commanding a school infamous for a rape spree and having no ways to stop it in time wouldn't look nice in her portfolio. I can't blame her at all, but it didn't take much time for Kuoh to become a sausage fest, not even the three Madonnas of Kuoh showing up to avoid being violated by our little uninvited guest. In the end, the whole student body mobilized itself and we had an extraordinary conference at campus, the remaining male of the student council, Saji, being bombarded by his classmates with questions and flying objects. Surprisingly, I don't see Hyoudou and his friends around. They're probably watching porn since this is a free day or something…

 _'I came to Kuoh with promises of Boobs and asses! Where are they now, Saji?! WHERE ARE THEY NOW?!'_

 _'Am I supposed to look at porn at school?! I enrolled in Kuoh because of the female population! You lied to us, DAMNED KUOH!"_

 _'You better fix that woman problem now, Saji! Or I'LL PULL A FAGGOT ON YOUR ASS JUST TO RELEASE SOME STRESS!'_

"Look, we're trying the best we can! You guys might not know, but we're doing our best to deal with this crisis! You have no idea how hard we're trying!" He tries to explain, and another can of soda come flying to his face , opening a wound and making him bleed. I, Kokuto Kurokami, am among them in the crowd seeing all of ideals and dreams being shattered by an angry and horny mob, and little by little he starts to break himself. As much it amuses me, it also saddens me, and truly, being sandwiched between body spray, manly sweat and testosterone can only take so much from my sanity. "I promise you, Kuoh will come back later! I promise this! So just shut the hell up and let us do our job!"

' _You suck, Saji…!'_

 _'You suck major balls, Saji!'_

 _'You suck cocks and balls, Saji!'_

 _'You gargle and deepthroat dicks and lick the balls clean, Saji!'_

"Ah, shut the hell up!"

"You need help there, Saji?" And he almost jumps on his place when I call for his attention, having walked my way through the crowd and right next to him on the podium so I could offer a hand in his affairs. I have no reason to, but seeing him in such a miserable state with little to no backing since the majority of the student council are girls and therefore have not been coming to school since, I feel a little bad for him, so better give him a hand. I reach next to him and snap the microphone to myself, still being showered in trash and other stuff. "Hey there, everybody. It's me, everybody's favorite man who has luck by his side, Kokuto Kurokami! And I'm here to say a few good ones in order to help everybody in this case and maybe take care of our little problem lingering around our school. How about that: instead of badmouthing the inefficiency of the Student council, we all gather our strengths and find the guy who has been taking our girls' innocence from us. How about that, doesn't that seem like a good plan?"

 ***WHACK!***

 _'FUCK YOU TOO, KUROKAMI!'_ And another can of soda came down from the heavens and hit me on the head, accompanied by more and more rubbish and whatever those guys who pick their hands on. Among other insults directed at me, my sexuality and my mother, they all agreed that they shouldn't be the ones risking their neck on that dangerous matter when the Student Council and the faculty should be the one taking care of student's safety. Saji makes me look back at him, an eyebrow arched and incredulous look.

"What a big help you're being, Kurokami." He snarks at me. I just shrug.

"Just you wait, you just need to give the public what they want." I wink at him, turning myself at the audience yet again. I might not be a woman or a businessman, but I know how to manipulate simple-minded people, and that it what Kuoh has in spades. I clean my throat a bit, then let out a sigh through the microphone. "Okay then, let's do it like this: Imagine if one of you or a group of you find the guy molesting the girls; they might become so grateful and happy for that, I can assure you all they'll start throwing their panties at their heroes. How's that sounds like?"

No response. No response, because there was no one to, the furious crowd suddenly vanished in a blink of an eye, leaving only me and Saji here, who was dumbfounded by this new discovery. Simple people, simple solutions…

"Wow…" He mutters. I turn back, smirk at him and throw the microphone back at him, adjusting the white rose flower on my hair so Mrs. Argento can have a better look at this place.

"You should learn how to deal people better if you want to become a professor, Mr. Treasurer. Miss Sitri would also appreciate that." I snark back at him, but from him no response, only a small defeated laugh and a scratch from the cheek. To defeat, but not humiliate, that's the way to learn the basics. That aside, now that the crowd control was solved without the American way(i.e. beating everyone to a bloody pulp), we can focus. "Well, now what? After that, the least you can do is letting me help you. I hate being part of this sausage party as much as the next guy, anyway."

"Okay, just because there is no one around, I'll let you help me." He clenches his teeth. "Since president Sona and the rest of my peerage are scanning around Kuoh and the surroundings with Gremory and her… I mean the other heiresses and their peerages…"

Ah, he said it.

He said _Gremory_.

Now I know the identity of the three devil heiresses in Kuoh academy: **Sitri** , **Himejima** and **Gremory** , who just so happen to be the three Madonnas of Kuoh as well, and as far as I know, that also includes **Kiba** into the equation, and probably Gremory's own club, the Occult Research club.

Man, Saji is really an idiot. I guess birds of a feather fly together with President Sona…

"Okay. Go on, Saji…"

"And since I'm the only male of my peerage and member of the student council, they would not suspect me being here for some crowd control and explanations. And now that I've evacuated the whole place, we can look for some clues here in Kuoh academy." He finishes, summoning something akin to a magical circle on the end of his fingers and making it work like a compass.

"Got it, so first evacuate the place, and search for the perpetrator while at it. Simple enough, but good. I wouldn't expect anything more complicated." I shrugged. Simple yet effective, I guess even president Sitri can have those moments of brightness sometimes. Still a stupid girl nonetheless. Oh well, nothing better to do, and I don't want Yuki to miss school just because of some pesky criminal, so better end this quick. I stood right next to the treasurer devil, looking at his compass. "So, any idea how to start this whole ordeal?"

"Since we couldn't find the assaulter by his scent or aura, we can only assume he's using some kind of magical camouflage." He claims, and I had to have a pause to process this whole ordeal a little. Not that is that complicated, but this is too much to swallow at once. In the end, he touched the magical rune on his fingers and it started to move again. "Fortunately, President Sona created this special rune which allows us to locate vestiges of magic around, even if they're from camouflage magic! She's such a genius, as expected from her! Now, we just have to follow the trace of magic and-…!"

 ***FLASH!***

"And then what?" I tried to ask since Saji apparently stopped mid-sentence for some reason. A few seconds, and still no response. I turned around and was taken back but a surprise: he wasn't there anymore! I waved my hands a few times and then, he was really there anymore! "Huh… Saji? Buddy, are you there? Where did you go? Don't leave me hanging like…!"

 ***FLASH!***

"… That!" And before I knew it, I blinked, and then found myself on a new location. I set myself hard on the floor, as if the ground itself moved for just a second and then stopped, making me almost lost my balance there! When I could tell left from right, I noticed that I was in a completely different location than the school's main campus: I was suddenly on the gym, all lights suddenly dim. I look around and to my surprise I see another thing: Saji was now hanging from the basketball row, unconscious and with some blood coming from his head. I tried to reach to help him. "Ah, Saji! Are you ok-…?"

 ***FLASH!***

" _There is a Smile of Love; And there is a Smile of Deceit; And there is a Smile of Smiles; In which these two Smiles meet. And there is a Frown of Hate; And there is a Frown of disdain ; And there is a Frown of Frowns; Which you strive to forget in vain_." But before I could even try to reach him, in another moment he was gone, a light flash in front of me, and then he was gone. Instead, from the darkness, a flash of light descended from the ceiling up to the floor, and following such light, I saw that it placed itself on the figure of a tall, slim yet muscular middle-aged man wearing a black coat, black shirt yet brown pants, sitting on one of the crowd seats. His long, rebellious purplish-red hair would hide part of his pale face and golden eyes and red hot lips, but not the scary pearl shine of his sharp, shark-like teeth. I turn to him, and prepare myself in a battle pose. "So, it looks like both of you are trying to stay in the way of my little carnal delight in this new paradise that I've found. Well, I'm sorry for that, but it looks like that I'll have to take some measures and deal with both of you since apparently there won't be any form of negotiation, am I right?"

"Paradise found? Carnal delight?" I parroted some of his lines, but realization didn't take long to place itself on my mind. I sharpened my eyes, looking at the man putting himself standing before jumping from the crowd seats to the main court of the gym. "So, you are the one violating and ravaging all the girls in Kuoh academy… I gotta say, you shouldn't be doing this. But since people like you don't mind what people like me think anyway, I guess I'll have to resort to violence this time in order to make you stop. I hope you're prepared, Mister…"

"Bacchus. You can call me Bacchus, after the roman God of intoxication, love and madness. Bacchus is my name now, and I drown myself in carnal desires and earthly pleasures." He starts, extending his arm towards the ceiling, and then hugging his own slender yet muscular body with a toothy smile with his sharp fangs. But then he looks at me, and a single shine from his golden eyes flashes at me, as he picks a jewel that was encrusted on a golden lock on a necklace on him. Someone, I can feel a presence from that jewel. A soul? Something similar? I don't know. "And now, as such, I shall get rid of those who don't understand my ways. **Shuri** , let's do this."

"I'm sorry, but your divine grace is ruining everybody's school life and spring of youth. I'll have to stop you for that." I said, now picking the holy gun and some bullets from my blazer, all of them aiming at him now. At least for now I should forget about Saji and just end this madness with this Bacchus dude. I'm sorry, Saji, but I guess I'll take all the credit for this one. "God of intoxication, love and madness? Why, pleased to meet you, I am the Black Blade of the Black God, who luck always sides with, dear Bacchus and Shuri. How about I show you two some of my tutelary up yours?"

…

God, that was badass.

I should start writing some of those down…


	16. Compulsive Lust Machine Nº16

**Back in action with a new chapter! After a small pause between the previous chapter and this one, now I have enough fuel to deal with this arc and something quite exciting to happen in the next one! Nothing else to say, but things will start to heat up around this story, and I'm not just talking about the ecchi and limes! I'm just kidding, now it's not the time to think about that, but it is a nice touch. Now, let's see how the son of Azazel shall deal with someone of kindred spirit. That should be nice.**

 **So, as a reminder: DxD does not belong to me. All rights to Ishibumi and its respective magazines. As always, R &R below writing what you think of this chapter! Until next time!**

* * *

 _Previously, on **Black Blade of the Black God** …_

"Is **lust** … The perversion of **Love** , or is it **love** … The perversion of **Lust**? The drive beings have to spread and reproduce, the desire humans have to satiate their own desires… Are their considered wrong, by the fragile threads and hypocritical judgment of this so-called society? Tell me, Black Blade, how wrong a man is, by following their own desires, both on flesh and spirit? So might consider me a champion of freedom."

"A champion of freedom… Or a delusional pervert, a madman who tries to justify his fantasies and actions by hiding under the thin layer of a revolutionary? I might not be the best individual to judge your behavior, Mr. Bacchus, but I do have enough of a conscious to say thus: a criminal you are, regardless of your own ideals or illusions. You might say, a perversion of perversion, you are."

"Humans… Are but stubborn, foolish creatures. They abandon their natural calls for folly, ethereal promises of beyond, and condemn their kin in preposterous, hypocritical arrogance. The clash between nature and nurture in the very womb of humankind is nothing but a laughing factor, that tickles the very irony of life. A joke… Where we are the punchline, life itself… Is the punchline."

"A comedy founded on tragedy, I see. But of course, no jest is full without misery, and no justice is done without harm. The circumstances of your misery interests me not, Mr. Bacchus, but my judgement shall descend upon you for thy harm. For deflowering the pure maidens of Kuoh academy, I shall be your Judge, Jury and Executioner. I lack authority for such, but I have the resolve to halt your assaults. So prepare to feel Iustitia's hammer, because this is what you shall receive, in retaliation for your attacks on Kuoh."

"You? Dare to lift a hand against your fellow man, for only following his natural urges, only guided by the rules imposed by lesser masses, where only hypocrites and cowards bloom? Inconceivable, unthinkable, another jester of society you are. I am no murderer, but if you demonstrate opposition in my wake, choices I will have none for you, except silence and woe. For you are only human, and has no authority to judge me, a fellow man, as God you are none. Only to follow the rules of man? Only a jester to make me cause such laughter. But only in pity, only in pity."

"The rules of man? No, I do not judge others following such, which are the shackles of nature itself. Nor do I follow altruistic reasons for such, as my interest in purity and maidenhood are far from priority. My interests are my own exclusive, only mine and mine alone, and as such I shall judge thee, as myself."

"Inconceivable, unthinkable, another joke thus has spoken. Very well, but before our eventual clash, do tell, jester, what drives your actions against me? The order? Flimsy excuses of love and morality? Perhaps recognition and prestige? So many questions, so little time."

"None of that, none of that."

"So, what drives you? Tell me, so your blood would bring me peace of mind. Love, is what drives me, so what drives you?"

"I will stop you… Because I want to."

"Huh, fair enough. Well then, deliver me Judgement… **Daniel**."

* * *

 _And now, to the conclusion…_

 ***BANG!***

 ***VUSH!***

"Tch…" And he vanishes again. I didn't even pull the trigger right, and he disappeared from my sight, only leaving small particles of light around and a hole shaped like a bullet on the other side of the gym. Gosh, I hope the Student Council don't neck me on this one. I feel a presence next to me, and I turned around, aiming my holy gun at that direction.

"But I do understand your reasoning, dear Daniel. Both of us, following our instincts in order to seek fulfillment instead of false promises, I can respect that as a fellow human." And as I expected, there he was, Mr. Bacchus, standing on top of the basketball hoop, his feet well-placed on the ring and looking down on me, making me want to pull the trigger yet again. Teleportation? Now I have to deal with that, too? "All things considered, however, our objectives couldn't be further from each other regarding our desires. A natural call against a single, individual instinct based on nurtured ideals, maybe borrowed, maybe engraved in your own heart like me. No matter, no matter, the only thing that do, now, is that you're the opposition, and as such, I shall eliminate you… Like a rainbow in the dark."

"Wait, what."

"Think fast." And out of nowhere, he pulls a knife shaped like the Venus-symbol from his pocket and made a throwing pose without taking his eyes off me. He's going to attack! I slid my finger down the trigger of my gun, ready to fire, but I blink only for a moment, and before I knew it, he vanished from my sight yet again. I couldn't even react fast enough for that one, as a sharp pain invaded me by the back of my shoulder, making me turn around and notice the knife stuck in there. By the other side of the gym, Mr. Bacchus was flipping another knife on his hand, a smile on his face. "I apologize for that. I tell you what: You're not really my type, and despite my views on nature, Darwinism is not included in such, you live and let die, just like that. So if you just walk away from here and leave me alone, I will not bother you again and let you walk away from here, unscathed. What do you say, Daniel? Let's put this whole ordeal behind us, and then we can continue with our lives."

"I refuse." I say, picking the knife out of my shoulder and throwing back at him. He dodged it and the weapon stuck on the wall behind him yet again. Yeah, that's not happening, I go to this school, and I want my life to be a fulfilling high school youth experience. To spend the rest of my high-school years in a sausage feast with no Yuki to flaunt over my loser virgin peers(despite the fact that I'm a virgin myself), I rather not. His hidden golden eyes became a bit unhappy with my declaration of war.

"I see. That's a pity, then. I am no murderer, but in order to live my life to the fullest, I have to get rid of all the hindrances. No exception." He laments to himself, picking another cross-shaped knives from his coat and then throwing at me. I tried to avoid them, but not even a second passed, and in the next, instead of just two, I saw dozen, hundreds of knives going in my direction! I can't avoid those, so I dodged, jumping to a side and rolling around to avoid the shower of blades against me. I couldn't avoid all of them, and some of them ended up stabbing me in the left leg, making me grunt in pain as I roll on the ground. Before I could get up though, I saw a shadow form right in front of me and then suddenly kick me in the face, launching me backwards and making me fall on my ass! Ow! Ow! Right in the nose, I can feel my nostrils start bleeding! I look and see Mr. Bacchus with his hands on his pockets, taking a sigh out of me as I try to stand up, blowing my nose a few times to get rid of the blood. "That's too bad as well, Daniel. We could've been friends or maybe acquaintances, since you seem to understand me, in a way. We are… Kindred souls, you and I."

"Sorry, but even a pathetic, lonely and socially awkward loser like me has to say that you're also not really my type. But thanks for the thought, it really is… A pity!" And then I picked my holy gun yet again and aimed at him, pulling the trigger as fast as I could, but again losing track of him as he vanishes from my sight and the bullet hit the wall in front of me. At this rate, I'll turn the entire gym into Swiss cheese. I turn around to aim for another location, but then ***BAM!*** , I feel a really hard punch in my face, making me falter a little! I aim at another direction and gunned there!

 ***BANG!***

"Missed me." And in another second, ***BAM!*,** another punch in the cheek, and then a knife stabbing me in the back! I turn around as fast as I could and pulled the trigger yet again, only to aim at nothing! "Missed me again, Daniel." ***BAM! BAM! STAB!***

"Kh…!" I couldn't help but to let a little whimper with another barrage of punches and then a knife almost hitting me in the right eye! I fortunately saw that one coming and so I dodged, but to no avail since I was now defenseless against another attack.

I put myself standing on the middle of the court and scanned around to try to find him, but not even his smell is on the air. So he really has teleportation, which it's by itself pretty broken. He won't leave Kuoh either, so no matter the circumstances now, he's after my head. First and foremost, I need to stop, relax and think about the current situation. He dragged Saji and I to a deserted location with little light, when he could probably teleport us to the edge of a cliff or something, or maybe to a nice trip to the Bahamas. Not to mention, he also seems to be able to teleport knives from that one time, otherwise that trick wouldn't be possible. Unless…

 ***BANG!*** I lift my holy gun once again and pulled the trigger to a random direction. I hear the sound of the bullet cutting through the air, and then a loud *TIN!*, the sound of metal tinging, followed by the bouncing of several basketballs, which soon infested the court I'm in, their round, orange shine blinding my vision momently until I was surrounded by them. I close my eyes, take a deep breath and wait a moment. Deep breath, hear the bounce of the balls around me, take a good look around and… And…

 ***VASH!***

 ***BANG!***

"Whoa!" And Lucky~⋆! I just simply twirled my gun to a direction with no balls and as expected I saw the face of Mr. Bacchus facing the barrel! I pulled the trigger once more and his whole face lighten up with the bullet, but before any contact could be made, he vanishes once more, but not for long: The next time I see him, he's fallen on the ground, massaging the small wound on his forehead. I caught him, and I just figure it out how his power works. He shakes his head, stands up and dusts himself a little, looking back at me. "So, you figure it out, apparently. You're sharper than the most, finding out in a pinch how Shuri works. I wouldn't expect anything less, Daniel. Or perhaps…"

 ***VOOSH!***

 **Lucky~**

"And now, this time… It's from behind!" I said as I didn't even turn around, I just lifted a leg and kicked from behind, and as expected I ended up kicking Mr. Bacchus right in the face! Or rather, I would as he crossed his arms In a defensive manner, shielding himself against my assault! He vanishes yet again, and a few seconds later reappear a few steps back with his bruised hands, taking a few steps back to look at me with perplexed eyes. I smirked right back at him. I figure it out how his Shuri world. So much for being stealthy with such ability, but after what he did, like relocating me to the gym, to move around while hiding in the shadows, he has shown some shades about how his powers work. You don't need to be a genius to figure it out either: What Shuri can do isn't teleportation…

It's _stopping time_.

It does make some sense: he relocated both me and Saji to a different place, yes, but why such an abandoned yet close place from where we were? Also, you just don't teleport a bunch of knives out of nowhere, and if he could summon them from thin air, it would be a lot easier to just teleport closer and stab me anywhere. But no, he didn't do such, because it's not teleportation, he's stopping time and messing with me. Well, never again, as long as the balls are bouncing around, the moment I see them either stopping or changing their trajectory for no reason, I will figure from where he's coming. If he was indeed teleporting, then same thing: I would just wait for the balls to hit him from any direction, hear the sound and then attack before he could recover and react!

"Nice one, Daniel. I wouldn't expect anything else." I follow the direction of that voice, and I look up where Mr. Bacchus is clapping his hands, sitting on one of the benches and smile on his lips, adjusting his bangs a little. Strange, I feel no animosity coming from here, nor any ill feelings as well. It's like he's making fun of me or something, and that honestly pisses me off a little. "That is correct. I, The God Bacchus of wine, love and intoxication, cannot teleport myself from point A to point B, or jump straight to point C or V for that matter. That's right. I cannot go on a vacation trip to the Bahamas or somewhere nice as Paris with a blink of an eye, nor I can move someone to a deserted island in the middle of nowhere, or outerspace for that matters and wait for them to suffocate. I can, in reality, create an infinite number of pauses between second 0 and second 1, and from there, from second 1 to second 2. Of course, my limit is around, what, 10 to 12 seconds of time-stopping, and it heavily depletes my own stamina. But, of course, it's enough to snatch myself a pretty woman, drug her, take her to a nice place and then let nature take its course. And, as you can see now, it's good for combat as well. All because… Of this beautiful jewel I found near a shrine, with the spirit of an adorable maiden by the name of Shuri. Am I a chosen one, or it was just a prank of luck? Who knows, who knows."

"Don't take fate so lightly, Mr. Bacchus. It… It seriously pisses me off." I declare to him, a frown on my brows indicating that I wasn't all that please with his remarks. He blinks at me once, twice, and opens an apologetic smile. Tama, who has been unravel up until this point suddenly manifested herself to hiss at him on my shoulder. Yeah, don't take fate lightly, at least next to us. Another moment, and another flash of light.

"I'm so sorry about it, Daniel. Please forgive me. A smoke, perh-…!" And I followed that same pattern with the balls, and the moment some of them moved, I aimed at that direction and pulled the trigger. ***BANG!*,** was the sound that echoed throughout the entire gym, and as expected I almost got him as I could feel a hand extend to my direction. When I turned around, all I saw was a pack of cigarettes in midair falling on the ground, and back on the benches, Mr. Bacchus himself, having a cold sweat. "Wow, aggressive. I just wanted to apologize and maybe share some cigarettes. You seem like the type that smokes."

"Well, I don't. Smoking is bad. I am no saint, but I know how those things can harm my precious body." I said, picking the pack of cigarette from the floor, picking one from it and putting that piece of tobacco in between my teeth, putting the rest away on my pocket. He draws a question mark for that, and I bite the butt. "However, having something like a cigarette in my mouth sure boosts my image. Cigarettes are the least embarrassing addiction to have, and a lot of people look cool with it. If it makes me look cool, I should at least try. Maybe just puffing is enough…"

"…" He opens then closes his mouth, like a fish would, then laughs between his teeth like I just told some funny joke, and again, that pissed me off a little. After everything he has done, it is that laugh and smile of his that is getting on my nerves. He looks back at me, standing up from the benches and a flash later, putting himself by the other side of the field. "You're… You're a pretty interesting guy, Daniel. I think we would've been friends if it wasn't for our clashing ideologies. But I like you, so I'll give you one chance; you figured how Shuri works, but can you defeat it? Let's have a little game: if you can harm me from here, before I harm you from there, I'll quit this whole raping thing and try to live a normal life by this society's standards. What do you think?"

"Really?" I question him with a small head tilt from a side. That's actually too good to be true in my books, but all things considered I have no reason to doubt him except for the fact that he is a wanted criminal. He apparently saw through my own doubts, and lifts both his hands in a sign of surrender. Even so, I should ask regardless. "And what makes you think I will believe in you. You are a criminal, Mr. Bacchus, so putting my faith in your words would be a bit foolish from my part."

"Daniel, dear, I am a man of my own word. If I say I will do something, I shall. Besides, even if you lose against me, if you already figure it out how Shuri works, others won't probably take much longer either. So I should quit while I am ahead before something bad happens." He tries to reason his own twisted logic, and despite everything that happened up to this point, I guess he has a point on his own. I frown a little bit, still a bit skeptical. There must be a catch. Mr. Bacchus makes a blasé pose, picking Shuri and putting it between his fingers to show the crimson jewel at me. "Besides, I might not be a murderer, but should I win, I get to make you silent about this whole ordeal… Forever."

"…" I knew it. It was both too good to be true and too honest to be coming from someone like him. I think I'm slowly crawling under the skin of Mr. Bacchus. He's right on one thing: we'll kindred souls. He's not a murderer, but he'll do anything to continue with this path he chose, and for that who am I to say anything? Still, I want to stop him, and if we're really that alike, then I can trust him. I put my gun down, looking him dead in the eyes, and sighed, putting myself in a battle stance. "Very well, Mr. Bacchus, I agree with your terms. Putting my life on the line, I the **Black Blade of the Black God** , the man who always has luck by his side, accept your challenge with the prize of getting rid of you from Kuoh and cease your criminal behavior forever."

"And I, Bacchus the God of Wine, party and intoxication, seal this deal with our lives on the line." He asks, putting also himself on a battle stance and jumping a few times in order to pump himself up. I can only sigh and crack my knuckles a few times for this whole ordeal, but I would be lying to say that this isn't even a little bit stimulating. I feel even a bit luckier today. We put ourselves in a battle stance looking at each other. "And so the rules are thus: I'm coming for the Kill. If you manage to harm me in any way before I kill you, Daniel, I will see that my aptitude for continuing this habit of mine is no longer safe, and I'll stop at once. You can even kill me if you want to during such, but I know you won't do it. It's that clear?"

"Crystal." I said, cracking now my neck a few times. So it's like playing balloons, the one who snaps first wins, and I'm against a time-stopping monster while the basketballs were all now on the floor, with no movement between them. If anything, I'm at disadvantage now since I'd have to do a lot to keep them moving and he can choose from whichever direction to kill me. But I am the man who always has luck by his side, and I already know what to do. He picks from his pocket a small golden coin, flipping it a few times on the air.

"The game starts the moment the coin hits the floor. Are you ready? So here we go. Don't disappoint me, Daniel." He claims, opening a bloodthirsty smile as I frowned a bit, nodding my head. One second, and then *TING!* he flips the said golden coin, that danced on the air a bit until it reached its peak, and now started to descend to the ground. Flipping down the air, its golden glittering like a shooting star down the dark gym. In the end, the seemed to stop as it got closer and closer to the ground, and in the final moment, we shared stares with each other, only waiting for the silent judge to give the signal. Any second now, any second now…

Any second now…

…

…

 ***TING!***

 ***VOOSH!***

"Luvah!"

 ***SLAAAAAAAAAAAASH~!***

…

…

"N-Not… Not bad, Daniel…" And after that millisecond that seemed like centuries, I could finally snap back to reality, opening my eyes and see the whole damage I caused with Luvah. As expected, just by swinging my rose-scythe around, the cutting power of it was enough to draw a line of destruction all around me, a single straight cut all over the walls of the gym. However, my eyes only landed on one thing: Mr. Bacchus, who was standing right on a corner of the field, with a massive cut diagonally across his chest and holding a stub where his left arm should be, his left hand on the floor. He was bleeding a lot, too. Even so, he was smiling, looking at me. "I should've expected that, you having a card on your sleeve. Maybe it was the arrogance of mine that doomed this entire encounter before it even start, and I only got myself to blame. I guess… This is my loss."

"Yeah." I murmured, morphing my scythe back into a rose and adjusting it right on my hair. Mr. Bacchus, a little better than before, than reaches for his pocket and tosses something at me, which I grab in midair and then take a look at it: it was cold, it was small, it is that crimson jewel that he calls Shuri.

"I guess my life as a free spirit is now over. I should stop now before someone else finds me out and kick my ass worse than you. Maybe following society's rules won't be too bad, at least it's better than dying or getting arrested. I won't be needing Shuri anymore, so you can have her. Just… Take good care of her. She's a nice person, despite being dead." He smiles, and then turns around to walk away from the gym. Before he could reach for the door, however, I flip my gun up yet again and aim it at him.

"You're too naïve, Mr. Bacchus, to turn your back on me while injured, knowing that I can just shoot you from here and get done with this whole madness. What makes you so sure I won't do just that?" I said, finger on the trigger ready to shoot at him at any signal of resistance. Instead, I got another type of reaction: He simply turned around, and smiled warmly at me. Kindred souls, eh? I sigh and lower my gun.

"I know you won't kill me, Daniel. I know you can't. You are… A nice person. Or at least too prideful to shoot at someone who has no way to defend himself. But I know you won't shoot, and knowing that makes me happy. To follow thoroughly your own instincts and pride, even when facing a moral dilemma. That's really adorable." He smiles, before waving his remaining hand at me, as I dumbly stare at the light from the exit going thin. Before he could get away, he spoke: "As for me… I guess I'll settle down and live within society and its rules and laws. Maybe find myself a wife, have a child and a job. If someone like you discovered my abilities and defeated me so soundly, better quit while I'm ahead and coolly withdrawn before I get myself killed. After all… _He who binds to himself a joy Does the winged life destroy; But he who kisses the joy as it flies Lives in Eternity's sunrise_. See ya someday, Daniel. I hope we can meet again."

"Yeah, same." I shrug and spit the cigarette butt in my mouth .as he exits through the door, leaving me alone with his jewel and his severed hand. I guess this is the end of that, at least. I defeated the hooligan that has been dreading and pestering my classmates and got myself a nice piece of jewelry for all that work. Kicking some sense and valor into him didn't hurt either, and despite the poor state of the gym, at least I can get out and pretend that nothing ever happened. Lucky~⋆. I look down at my hand and stared at the crimson jewel on it, shaped like a heart and emitting a small light in the shape of a thunderbolt from within. So, this is the source of his power, a jewel that he found near a shrine with a soul inside, no less. I wonder how he knew all of that. I shined that jewel next to a source of light coming from the window. "Shuri, wasn't it? Nice to meet you. My name is… Kokuto. Now, what can I do for y-…?"

 ***ZING!***

"Ugh…!" I couldn't even finish my sentence, a sharp pain cut through my skull like a silver bullet, making me hold my face in pain. What is this? A headache out of nowhere? No, this is beyond a simple headache. My vision starts to blur, and once the gym I once knew started to fade away, and before I knew it, my entire vision was covered by a thick white fog on a blank horizon. However, I was not alone in there: at a distance, I see the figure of a tall, long-dark-haired woman wearing a miko outfit. Wait, is that senior Himejima? She does look a lot like senior Himejima! She approaches me, staring at me with those big brown eyes, and smiles, putting a hand on my shoulder. "Himejima…?"

" _.._." I couldn't hear it but she murmurs something to me in the most beautiful, softest voice I've ever heard, but I couldn't respond it back as the sharp pain in my skull increases, and everything starts to get blanker and blanker, so much she disappears from my sight and the scenario changes to totally white. When I blink and find myself again, she was gone, and I was kneeled yet again in the middle of the gym, however, when I took a closer look, I noticed something different: in the hand that was previously holding the jewel, it was now holding something completely different.

"A… Spear?" I mention to myself. Yeah, out of the sudden and for some reason, I am now carrying a Chinese spear, with an emerald hold which on ends were decorated with a golden rings, and on edge, there was a silver large, single-edged blade with the image of a flaming bird imprinted on it, while in the pommel there was a fiery-red horsehair tassel. It looked so cool, like an ancient weapon of a sorts. I blinked at it once, twice, and rolled it around a bit. "Cool!"

And out of nowhere I started to swing it around! Despite everything the spear is so light and the swings are so smooth! Thrusts, slashes, cuts, I shadow-fought like a child with great enthusiasm with this new weapon of mine, only to now notice that out of the sudden the blade started to produce flames for some reason! But just like the blade, it danced alongside my own movements, as if it was part of the weapon itself!

Out of the sudden, something new happened: I caught the handle in such a way that out of the sudden it divided itself into three similar staffs, connected by silver chains! The blade disappeared for some reason but now I have something akin to a three-sectioned nunchaku! Which spits lightning, for some reason! I couldn't hold my excitement, I started to wave and flail that new weapon while doing Bruce Lee noises! Wootah! Hyah! Kwayah! Lightning and lights flies everywhere! In the end, I caught the middle part of the nunchaku and morphed back to a spear, and then I made a pose as lights came from the sky and highlighted me!

"That's what I'm talking about, **Shuri**! Or should I say… **Crimson King**!" I exclaimed the new name for my new weapon, and just like that, it was then engulfed in bright light as it became smaller and smaller, until it morphed then into a golden ring with a crimson jewel on my ring finger. Great, another day, another woman turned into a weapon for me to never use. I'm totally okay with that, by the way, I just hope that Tama doesn't get jealous…

"Kurokami…!" I know that voice. Out of the darkness from the locker rooms, here comes the very-little known treasurer of the student Council Genshirou Saji, for some reason covered in scratches and cuts and blood, but alive and well nonetheless. I'm glad that he's okay, but it seems that was something or someone keeping him busy. He stops right in front of me and has a moment to catch his breath up. "Holy…! I finally found you! You have no idea what happened back in that locker rooms! A locker room filled with traps and wild animals! Someone just created a trap inside the locker room! I can't believe that you're fine after all of that!"

"Yeah, I'm glad that you're okay. It seems that you also had your share of adventures, man." I said to nonchalantly, hiding from him my newly-acquired weapon in the shape of a pretty neat ring. As expected, once he knows that I'm fine from harm, his eyes wander around looking for the possible assaulter, only to be for naught since… I let him escape. Then his eyes land on the severed hand on the floor, with blood still fresh and dripping from the stub. He comes closer to examine it, and then turns to me.

"You… Did you do this? Did you find the culprit behind those attacks, or at least who brought us here in the first place?" He questions me with an arched eyebrow, and I simply nodded it, gaining an incredulous look from him. I take all the responsibilities for my actions, if it is that what he wants to know, but he seems a bit surprised. He lifts up to look at me directly in the eyes, and asked once again. "So, did you kill him? Make sure he was 100%, right? That hand of his… It is the only that that was left of him, right?"

"No, I didn't kill him. I cut his arm off, but that's it." I shrugged, and the shine on his eyes suddenly vanished with my declaration, and he has his mouth agape like a fish. I am both surprised and not that he would end up like that. "But don't worry, I spoke to him a little before our little match and I made sure to make him promise he won't be coming or be attacking girls ever again. So please stop staring at me like that…"

"You… Let him go away? But why?! You know that he's criminal and a dangerous rapist! And you let him go away because he _promised_ you?! What makes you think he'll stay true to his own words?! He's a criminal!" He starts to critique and scream at me, his eyes shining pure and distillated frustration. He was really mad at me for making Mr. Bacchus escape with life, which saddens me a little, but not enough to make me flinch or regret my decisions. "Why?! Why did you let him go?! Answer me, Kurokami!"

"Because… He seemed like a trustworthy guy." I say to him, no more no less. Suddenly, his face faults, it turns quite grim, as if he loses all hope he has for me. Not in a violent, explosive way, mind you, but in a subdued, quiet way, like he's staring at me like I was complete garbage.

"You let him go… Because he seemed trustworthy? Have you any idea how low I think of you right now?" He says with dark eyes, and I simply shrug off. It's not like his opinion on me matters even an atto-bit, but even so, it kinda hurts hearing that out loud. He comes closer to me in a threatening way, and before I knew it, we were almost touching noses. This is very awkward, and not in a good way. "Listen Kurokami, this is not only our school, this is the first step to president Sona's dream, her dream, my dream as well. And I want you to know that if this action of yours ends up tainting her reputation in here, I will consider you my enemy for life."

"Look, I did it, okay? I stopped the maniac that was harassing the girls without breaking any rules or making a great fuss about it, so the least you can do is give me a good old 'thank you' and maybe pay me barbecue. If something happens again here, I will take responsibility, I swear! But I know he won't come here anymore! I beat him, and if he comes by again, I'll just beat him again." I shrugged, and he is almost jumping out of rage, something I could not even grasp the reason why.

"This is not the problem here, Kurokami! You just let a serial rapist go on unscathed! I don't care if you had tea with him or had a good time, he's a criminal, a monster! He defiled several our classmates and one of them killed herself for that!" He continues to scream at my face, and I'm already getting a bit irritated with him wanting to go on with this ordeal.

"Yeah, but he didn't kill them himself, so I see no reason to sentence him to death. I am no murderer, and if you want to kill him, be my guest, but I refuse to have my dirt my hands for something that doesn't concern me." And out nowhere he picks me by the collar and slams me to the wall, spitting some blood on me from his clothes. Ew, gross, he stinks of death. Even so, I couldn't free myself from his grasp, showing me the strength of a devil. Even so, I must keep my calm, or I would be betraying my image. "Look, I get it, what he did was horrible and disgusting, but you tell me you kill him, then what? It would be another story for me if he had killed those girls, unless you have some kind of Sacred Gear which can turn back time or revive the dead, but he didn't, and unlike death, you can do something about it. I dealt with him and made him promise he won't attack again, so why don't you just, I dunno, erase their memories about the whole incident, or if this isn't possible, just pay for some therapy sessions? It can't be that hard for your precious devil heiress student council president King, right?"

"Yeah, because it is so easy to remedy the situation than just prevent it from happening in the first place!" He screams while I can smell the fish breath coming from his mouth. What a pain, why does he care so much, anyway? Oh right, because of his precious student council president or something. Whatever, I did what I did, and what I didn't, I didn't because it goes against my principles, and I don't like that at all. He finally let goes of me, and huffs a tired and angry cloud of out of his system, adjusting his own uniform and walking away from me, but not before picking the severed hand for himself. "I won't say thanks to you, Kurokami, because unless I see the harasser dead and buried, this case is not over yet. However, I will inform president Sona that he has a missing hand and take a closer look to this one, and they'll keep an eye for him. We'll end him for good, whatever you like it or not."

"Okay then, it's none of my business. But do tell, how are you going to incriminate someone who has no shadow or evidence, just based on the fact that he has only one hand? He said he'll stop it now, so there is no way for you to catch him red-handed either. So, how are you going to do it?" I question him, and then there was a moment of silence. He stops walking, gives me a side glance from over his shoulder, and clenches his teeth in a sign of hostility.

"Fuck you, Kurokami. As for now, you've made me your enemy." And that was all he said before turning back and walking away from the gym, leaving me all alone yet again. I look down on my hand to look at the ring with the crimson jewel on it, and sighed.

I'm not regretting my decision in the slightest, I'm no murderer, but maybe lying to him would have made him less angry. Oh well, what's done it's done, and like I said, I can't turn back on time, but neither can he, so the best we can do is play with the cards we have now. Still, maybe I should take today at face values and be a little more sensitive. Maybe I should buy some flowers for those girls and get-good cards, maybe those will make them feel a little better. I pick my own pace to the exit of the gym, and since it is already noon, take my way back home. I just want to rest and put this whole day away… Yeah, nobody tells me what to do except me. Except me…

Maybe Mr. Bacchus is not that wrong, following your own desires instead of conforming to society is nice once in a while. However, unlike him, I am not a _bad person_ , at all.

Maybe I should call Yuki and said that Kuoh is all safe now. I should do just that.

…

…

'Surprise, surprise! Kurokami is asleep again...'

'Is everything he ever does in class, sleeping during lectures, all alone. It's a bit gross, too, even for a transferred guy...'

'It's a shame, too. He certainly is cute.'

'Ew~, don't say that. He might hear you and want to talk to you...'

'Creepy~...'

Ah, shut up~. It's not like I don't want to have friends, being the transferred guy around is hard, you know. Besides, if you guys have time to talk like that behind my back, then come here and talk to me, damnit…

But at least is a sign that everything is going back to normal in Kuoh: the girls are coming back, there are no more riots involving horny teenagers and the student council, and at least for now I can hear the voices of disdain and hatred from my classmates. Everything is back to normal, at least. Everything is back to normal…

 _'Eww~, gross. Kurokami is smiling while he's asleep. That's really gross~…'_

 _'Hahahah, he must be dreaming something perverted. What a loser~!'_

 _'To think the guys thought they would get some reward for getting rid of that rapist~. In their dreams, bunch of perverts~.'_

 _'Ewww~. Disgusting…'_

…

And I wouldn't want it any other way..


	17. Kon

**Dear readers, welcome to another chapter about Kokuto's adventures through out the supernatural world. As given the last chapter, let's shake some ideas a bit, right? Nothing on these first notes, but let me say something that some might enjoy: this chapter, our mc encounters quite a foxy companion now. How about it? Can you guess who it is? Maybe, maybe not, but as always R &R and have a great read, leave your comments down below!**

 **DxD belongs to Ishibumi and its respective magazines. The OC belongs to yours truly.**

* * *

Dear reader, have you ever seen a dead body?

A cold, unmoving, pale body of a person that is no more in this world. Passed on, a person that is no more, ceasing to be, expired and gone to see its maker? Stiff, bereft of life, resting in peace? Which metabolic processes is now history, offed the twig, kicked the bucket, shuffled of its mortal coil, run down the curtain and joined the bleeding choir invisible? An ex-person?

Well, I am right now. Everything started when I woke up this morning and took my usual way to Kuoh academy. A few days have passed ever since my encounter with Mr. Bacchus and the start of my supposed rivalry with treasurer Saji, and things seem to be going back on track. The female population is coming back to school and the guys are no longer causing riots around the campus. Some girls were raped, some guys were beaten until there were in a coma, a professor mysteriously disappeared and the riots costed a few millions yens in collateral damage, but that aside, everything seemed to be fine, going smoothly as always now that I can silently brag about my not!girlfriend in front of those virgin losers(despite the fact that I'm a virgin myself) and continue with my regular school life.

But then in my way to Kuoh academy, as the sunny morphed to a foggy day, in a deserted street in the morning, I found myself facing a dead body in the middle of the street, the cold carcass of a former fellow human who despite its state, didn't seem to be there for long. Of course, I was both surprised and disturbed for such a morbid sight, but then again, death makes part of life, so I tried to not think too much about it and rationalize the situation thus far. I didn't do anything to cause this, so I shouldn't think too much of it, take a deep breath and do what a normal person should: call the cops and make them take care of this.

With that out of the way, dear reader, have you ever seen someone feasting on said dead body?

Yeah, the dead body wasn't alone in this whole situation: there was also someone or at least something humanoid enough eating the corpse from the stomach, munching on intestines and other entrails and spewing blood everywhere, producing guttural and animalistic sounds all the way. I hear the sound of ripping flesh, cracking bones and splattering blood, all while the mist around us started to be tinted in red. The smell of bile and carnage is nauseating, and the more I like, the sicker I feel. This is a scenario beyond one would considering it normal, one that one could not or should not be thought of at daily basis, yet here I am, facing what I could only describe as one of the goriest things that I've seen in a while trying to remain calm the whole time, with different levels of success, of course. I couldn't move, I couldn't blink well, all I could do in such moment was stare while a fellow human being was being eaten to pieces by another creature that looked like, but apparently wasn't human.

I take a step back in order to organize better my line of thoughts, but the sound of my shoes against the hard concrete was probably too loud for the monster to hear me, as it turned its face to look at me, giving a good look at its face: a pale, distorted caricature of a face with large blank eyes and a single dot as pupils and distorted squared teeth decorating its enormous mouth. I close one of my eyes so I wouldn't completely stare at its ugly face, and so I did what a normal person should.

"Hi, good morning."

"…" It didn't say anything, only slowly put itself standing and turned around to face me, its face still dripping blood and entrails as it munched on it and spat the remains to a random direction. All of its attention was now turned to me, so I did the second thing a normal person should do: call the cops and let them take care of that. I clicked my phone up, dialed the number and waited for the call to connect.

…

 _'Emergency, please state your name and location. How can I help you?'_

"Hello, my name is Kokuto Kurokami and I'm speaking from the K district around the Y street. There has been an accident near here, and I want to report it."

 _'Very well. What has happened so that we could instruct the proper procedures until the emergency arrives?'_

"Well, you see, I just found someone who looks like a Jikininki eating another person and now it's looking directly at me ready to strik-…" And I couldn't even finish my sentence when that creature that looks like a jikininki reached for me and tried to take a bite out of my own face, splashing some blood onto my clothes! I dodged that one on time with another backwards jump and landed a few feet away, still with my cellphone on hand. I turned back at it. "Sorry for that, the creature just tried to eat my entire face. But as I was saying, how can I deal with this?"

 _'Very well, sir. First: make sure that the previous victim is really dead. If it's still struggling to survive, maybe you can use him or her in your advantage in order to buy some time. Use him or her as a distraction or even a placeholder for the Jikininki. Is it dead or not?'_

"Wait, let me see. Hey, you! Are you dead?!" I asked as I dodged yet another claw to the face and a bite aiming at my stomach. The person by the other side, who had its guts exposed and was longer moving, said or gesticulated at nothing, so I can only assume it was indeed dead. May his soul rest in peace. I turned to the cellphone. "Nope, he's pushing up daisies now."

'Oh, may his or her soul rest in peace, then. In that case, I apologize, but you'll have to wait and hold the creature back until emergency arrives. Try not to die and avoid confrontation with the creature, but do not lose sight of it, help is on the way. Have a nice day.'

"Okay, thank you, I guess." I said, and then ***SNAP!*,** a claw made out of sharp-as-steel nails growing from pale, long fingers snaps the cellphone away from my hands, which rolled around the floor away from my grasp. Now it was only the Jikininki and I, looking at each other, with it licking its fingers soaked in crimson fluids. I drop my briefcase on a safe spot and also lick my thumbs with the tip of my tongue. No reason, it was just feeling like it. "So, no backup, no plan B, no help; sounds like a very bad idea for a date, don't you think? I actually feel like crying right now, I was expecting a calm and normal day in my life, but now this happens… It seems that I'll have to act again. Sigh, I really hate this…"

 ***SLASH!***

"And I hate that even more!" I yelled at no one in particular dodging yet another slash from the Jikininki's sharp claws. He's fast, but predictable, so I have no problem dodging most of his attacks! Left, right, left, right! Back, forward, a bit to the left and then right! Just pay attention to its feet and its hands and you'll figure how it works and to where it'll move. The pale, deformed monster tries and tries to slash me to pieces, but it is no use, I can see his movements! Or so I thought. ***TRIP!*,** in a spam of a second, the Jikininki used its long pale leg to speak right under me and trip me, forcing me to clash my back onto the floor, as it jumped towards me! "Not good…!"

"Kiii~…!" It hissed at me, claws at hand ready to strike! It aimed at my head, so I was quick to dodge and roll on the ground in order to regain my balance and stand up yet again, jumping away from the Jikininki's range, which had now its hand stuck on the pavement, trying but failing to free itself. I crack my neck a few times in order to get rid of the tension around my body, then picked my phone back from the ground, tapping it a few times to see if it was still working. Fortunately, it still was, somehow. I put it next to my ear and to my surprise the call was still going.

'Sir? Sir, are you still there? Have the creature killed you already? If so, would you like to redirect you for our funerary services? We have perfect discounts for people killed mid-calls.' The woman by the other side of the line continues to speak in her usual cheerful tone, and only after she hears the click on me that she stops for a moment. I blink once, twice, take a deep breath to recompose myself to look presentable.

"No, I'm not dead yet. But I might consider the funerary service, thank you very much. But I guess help is not needed anymore, thank you. I'm going to hang up now, have a nice day." And with that I pressed the small red icon on my phone and ended the call. I turn back to the Jikininki which was still with its hand stuck on the ground and took a clearer look from it. The pale skin, the deformities on the big eyes and teeth, the fact it was just eating a fellow human being who's now rotting away by the sidewalk, there is no mistaking it, 'dis but indeed a Jikininki, and after the events of the previous days, I have the impression I have something to do with it regardless of my current alignment. I come closer to it as it hisses back like some kind of animal. I just sigh. "Now, what to do with you? Since you're not human or even sapient, I have no problem dispatching the likes of you. However, you're still a powerful asset for me to prove my innocence since I have you to blame for that fact you just killed someone. Also, I want to vent some frustrations now that you soiled my uniform and made me late for classes. But, then again, I'm not a violent nor vengeful person, so I'll just call the emergency and leave you as be, and with that I'll have an excuse to have missed classes. You should be grateful for th-…"

 ***VOOOOOSH!***

"… -at." And then something quite unexpected happen: the Jikininki for some reason or another suddenly combusts into flames, golden flames that didn't produce any heat should I add, and turned into a pile of golden ash on the ground, which was soon swept away by the foggy wind of this morning. I blink once, twice, and open a half-smile of surprise, terror and uncertainness. Okay, what the hell was that? I hear woody steps coming closer, so I turn around behind the curtain of mist.

"How curious. Youkais shouldn't be acting around Kuoh like this, yet this is what I found, at bright daylight no less. Something is not quite right, and that might become a problem." That calm, composed voice yet again, behind the curtain of mist, I see a young woman wearing a miko outfit and turning her red eyes directly at me, a small paper talisman on her hand which was on fire. Ah, it's her again. "And who do I find among this mess? Kurokami, long time no see."

"Not long enough, I'm afraid." I sigh to myself, turning my face away so she wouldn't notice the grimace on me. It's not that I dislike seeing cute girls on my daily basis or anything, but they're always accompanied by the worst of scenarios or causing said scenarios themselves. Even so, I adjust my uniform and bowed a little to her. "That aside, it's a pleasure to meet you once again, Miss Himejima. I'm glad to see you well."

"My oh my, don't need to be so formal, Kurokami." She laughs behind her hand like a noblewoman, which for some reason pisses me off a little. I dunno, it gives me the impression she's looking down on me or something. "You can call me just 'Suzaku' if you'd like, it saves you a lot of trouble, no?"

"Eh, I rather not. People might start thinking we're close or something and that's kind of gross. No thank you." I shake my hands negatively in the air and making a face that shows how uncomfortable that subject is to me. Really, I rather not call people by their first name because it gives me the creeps, and something about is just not right for me. She gives me a face of disbelief, but then smiles back again. "So, Miss Himejima…"

"Please, Suzaku."

"Miss Himejima…"

"…"

"It seems that you're quite aware of what this is all about, the Jikininki, which I assume you were also the one who… Ended him." I said, taking a quick glance at where the golden dust used to be. I turn back at her, and she nodded. Makes sense, she's the only one here who's not dead or something.

"Correction: I 'put it to sleep'. Youkais are still spirits of Nature, and to exorcize them is to make them docile for a while so they can not hurt humans anymore." She corrects me, and I nod back at her with that little bit of extra trivia. That's interesting in a way, I would be lying if I said it wasn't impressive in some way, but back to reality, her face falters a bit and her eyes sharpens a bit, looking over her shoulder as in thought. "But there is something not quite right here. There were supposed to be no youkais haunting Kuoh considering that… They shouldn't be here in Kuoh at all. Specially attacking humans, indiscriminately. Something is wrong."

"Well, they shouldn't, but they are now, apparently." I said, walking besides the dead body with its guts exposed and half of its face frozen in a contorted expression of fear and terror, the order was completely munched away like a muffin, by the way. I picked a handkerchief and covered the exposed flesh with it, clapping my hands a few times in order to wish for this man to find peace in the afterlife. One more body to the body toll; may the God's rest this poor man's soul. "So, Miss Himejima, any reason for this little breach? I mean, you said they weren't supposed to attack here of all places, so why this happened?"

"I don't know. I just don't know. Maybe there has been an increase of supernatural activity around Kuoh, or maybe there has been a disrupt of energy nearby, or perhaps…" She turns her pensive eyes back to me and blink a few times. "Maybe, maybe the presence of something far stronger and far more dangerous is attracting supernatural creatures out of lust for its power or fear for an invasion."

"Are you… Are you insinuating it is my fault that someone died? That this guy is pushing daisies now because of me and my supernatural tendencies? I'm hurt, Miss Himejima. I'm really hurt. Your lack of understanding and shame brings me harm and almost tears to my eyes. O woe me, such a disgrace." I fake tears and hurt, turning my face away from her and hiding my eyes behind my hand. I'm just kidding, of course. It's not like being sad will bring this fellow here back to life, and I have no control over it, so I shouldn't feel guilty at all. It's just an unfortunate guy who bumped into an unfortunate hour, woe is he, but it's not my fault, so no reason to feel guilty. But still, being able to attract supernatural creatures with my presence sounds too bothersome for someone like me, so better get this fixed before I end up killing someone again and ruining my entire day for it. "Okay, time to feel faux guilt is over. So, Miss Himejima, any idea how to remedy this situation. I don't know about you, but having the ability to attract evil spirits to harm those close to me sounds like a big no-no, especially for a healthy high-schooler such as myself. I might be Kokuto Kurokami, the man who always has luck by his side, but I don't spirits to harass others. That, I would feel guilty about."

"Calm down, Kurokami. We don't know for sure if this is the case, don't be so hasty in blaming yourself." She lifts a hand and opens a smile in order to calm me down, I think. I am calm and collected, I just want to be pampered by a big-titted miko just for a change of pace. But that aside, she's really trying to comfort me, huh? She's nice and all, but I can't shake the feeling that is something quite fishy about her, maybe because she really resembles that other Himejima. From inside her outfit, Himejima brings forward a white piece of parchment with something written on it. A talisman for protection, how kind of her. "Here, in any case, in such times of disarray, this should protect you against other forms of malicious spirits. It may not be much, but this is all I can offer as for now."

"Thank you very much, I guess. I… Appreciate it." I'm not kidding this time, she's being awfully helpful and kind to me, she's making me blush a little. So, this is what a 'kind lady' is like, she's indeed dreamy. But it's not like I'm falling in love for her, of course, I'm just surprised how affable she's being with me after all, plus this is the first time someone is being nice to me, so it's a change of pace too abrupt for me. Hahahah, I feel like crying a little. Just kidding. I bow down to her. "Well then. Miss Himejima, if you want my assistance on anything for that matter, I'm ready to help or something. Otherwise, I should be taking my way to Kuoh academy or something."

You would think I am kidding or playing with her heart by offering help only to snag my hand away on the last moment, but no. I'm actually trying to be polite and offer her a helping hand since she's being so kind. I know she probably can deal with this whole youkai mess alone and well, but you never know. Instead, she just smiles, a bright one at that too.

"You may. Do not worry, Kurokami, I can deal with this whole ordeal without much trouble. But I appreaciate your worries about my wellbeing." She smiles sweetly, and I can't help but to blush a little and turn my face away in shame. Me, Kokuto Kurokami, being intimidated and infatuated by a big-breasted miko, how unlikely. Unconceivable, unbelievable, sounds so much like a bad joke. "That's really adorable, Kurokami. This brighter side of yours is captivating."

"I appreciate it." I said, turning around and walking down the misty road back to Kuoh academy while putting the talisman on my briefcase just to be sure, leaving her behind. I can feel it, somehow I can feel that she's still smiling right behind my back, and this is making me nervous despite the fact I'm just walking pass a dead body. Himejima sure is very kind and helpful, and something one might call 'beautiful'… I should probably stop thinking about other girls, I already have a not!girlfriend back in Kuoh, and despite her being fake, she's a lot more helpful than Himejima, since I can't show her around to those perverted virgin losers around my school(despite the fact that I'm a virgin myself), so I rather have Yuki, all things considered…

Despite all the problems I've encountered beforehand, my walk to Kuoh was really calm and peaceful otherwise. In fact, too calm and peaceful even. While I walked around the road filled by fog and wind, there wasn't a single soul to share my presence with. A cold and lonely walk towards an equally lonely destination. Once I reached Kuoh academy, I saw there was nobody there either, the entire campus devoid of any form of life or interaction. Maybe I'm just overthinking, after all, I am late for school since I had to deal with some pretty… Morbid matters, so I shouldn't bother much considering this is time for classes, and as such, nobody should be walking around in a time like this. I'm in the wrong here, so I shouldn't be all jacked up…

I slide the door to the inner corridors open, and nobody is here to pick their shoes. Makes sense, you only touch your shoelockers once in or out of school, so I can only walk towards mine, as always filled to the brim with death threats, graffiti and nails on glue, clean it up a bit and put my shoes away to put my indoor shoes. Not before putting the nails inside them away as well, of course…

A walk towards the corridor, lonely and silent, not a single sound or living soul around. Again, possibly explained by the fact that it's time for classes now, and I'm the only one late. Even so, today is such a gloomy day, I don't feel like going to classes at all: today started as such a sunny day, now it's all foggy and moggy outside, even someone like me feels infected with melancholy, like I'm starting to rot away for no reason, slowly devoured by the air itself. Also, is it me, or the fog is starting to get inside as well. There are stains on the glass, and I can't see the inside of the classes because there is so much fog! I can also see my own breath in here, but for some reason I feel no cold, or heat, or anything at all. But I do feel some chills down my spine.

The loneliness is spectacularly distorting my sense of warmth, after all, I am a diligent and healthy highschool student who does his homework and tries to keep up with classes only to be caught by a sudden sense of sleepiness; so it's only natural for me to feel uneasy by the loneliness caused by my tardiness. Maybe I have even bigger pride in my diligence than I give credit for, which would make sense for me to not notice because, after all, I'm Kokuto Kurokami. Of all days but today, luck has always sided with me. I hope maybe another lunch with Yuki can cheer me up a little…

Whatever, I hope the professor don't scold me too much and let me stay for classes. I know professor Tsukino doesn't like me very much, but at least he can cut me some slack after what happened a few days before, and won't toss me a piece of chalk when I fall asleep again. Oh well, the only thing I can do now is hope for the best and wish very hard that I don't have to speak with Saji or anyone of the student council at least for today. I reach for the handler of the sliding door and push it so I can face my classmates and professor and start another day in Kuoh academy…

Only to find the entire classroom deserted. Again, not a single sign of life anywhere, only chairs, seats and the professor's table, an empty room with nothing in it, which made me draw a question mark. Huh? Is today some holyday or something? Where's everybody? Or maybe this is another elaborated prank from everyone in school in order to intimidate me and make me feel ostracized. I just sigh and shrug; unless they bleach my clothes, toss my phone down the toilet with me in it and lynch me whole, this is nothing but a nuisance compared to my previous school…

"Well, no point in panicking at this point. Strange occurrences has become commonplace as for now, so I just have to let it slide and wait for something else to happen." I said to no one in particular, entering the room after a quick bow and apology for my lateness to the inexistent class, and making my way to my seat where I dropped my suitcase by. I didn't sit on my seat for now though, instead I walked towards the professor's table to kill some time and mess with it a little. He's always confiscating games, comics and other stuff from my classmates, so I think picking some stuff from him might be a good way to mess with him. Not that I'm a criminal or anything, I've never killed, robbed or raped anyone ever since I was born, but I am a mischievous person who likes to mess with people, especially people I dislike, like professor Tsukino, and I has been never caught thanks to my luck. That aside, I wonder what of literature someone as dull, boring and uneventful as professor Tsukino reads on his spare time. Maybe we share some likes and dislikes we can talk about before he sends me to detention without any good reason, like he always does. I sit on his table, pull the drawer and look inside to see what goods he hides away from us, his dear students. "Let's see, what secrets does my good-for-nothing, holier-than-thou piece of crap professor hides in the drawer of his teacher table… Let's see, let's see…"

 **~~My sadistic, big-dicked sexy boss and 50 other stories of rose-filled fantasies~!~~**

"…"

…

…

I'm… I'm just going to put this right where it was, close the drawer, walk back to my seat and never talk about that to anyone, ever.

At least now I know the real reason why Professor Tsukino hates perverts so much…

Nothing else to do since I just want some mental bleach to get rid of what I just witnessed and the fog covering my entire view from the outside world, I guess the best I can do for now is sleep and wait for something exciting to happen. There is nobody here, the place is practically deserted, so I just close my eyes and take a nap until something happens, with me or someone else, for that matter. And so I do just that, closing my eyes and touching my cheek on the cold table to push some Z's or something. It has been such an eventful and chaotic, not to mention what just transpired this morning, so a good slumber might be enough to regain some of my mood. I sigh, I use my briefcase as a pillow, and then push myself into the world of dreams…

…

…

"Look, I don't have the time or the patience for this whole mind games nonsense. If you want to appear and present yourself, just do it, I already notice it. It has been ages since I notice it, so please, end this already so that I can go home!" I shot my back upwards once my nap was done and my patience was out. I know how this works: a new mistery, I play dumb for some time, something or someone present itself, we do something and it ends just like that, but I don't feel all that nice today, and to wait for something to happen sounds such a waste of time in this obvious scenario. "I'm sorry if I'm throwing you off your groove with all of this mysterious and enchanting vibe, but I'm in a hurry and in a really bad mood today, so please present yourself and your business with me!"

"Kon."

"…?!" And that little word echoed throughout the entire empty room, and out of the sudden, without a single moment lost, a giant black ferocious fox head of deep red fur and furious red eyes appeared from the ground with its giant mouth filled with sharp fangs and tried to take a bite out of me! I knew it, something about it was wrong about this whole ordeal! I jumped back and landed on the back seats while my own was devoured by the fox head, that then dissipated itself into a black mist. That was close, that was very close! But it seems that my companion for today is here now, so I adjust my tie and uniform a little and sit properly on my seat. I have to hide the fact that I'm now having a little panic attack in order to appease her for our little date.

"Sharp and sardonic. That's quite a mouth you got there, Son the watcher." I hear a voice calling for my moniker, and little by little the dust the fox has turned into starts to get denser and denser, and move to the front of the classroom. Once the mist was so dense and concentrated it looked more like a hovering shadow, it started to take a more humanoid shape. I blinked once, twice, and in the end the mist took the shape of something else: a pale, slender, long-haired Japanese beauty of silky-smooth skin covered in a flowery black Kimono, black hair in a Hime cut and dull yet slit rufous red eyes, that were aiming me with such dread and interest, the worst kind. I close one of my eyes because her beauty combined with my sudden terror is making me shiver so I have to control myself or else I might start making puns on the whim. She sat on the professor's table with her long legs crossed, and turns her attention to me, opening a fanged smile. "I don't dislike it at all, but next time, I might sew it shut so it won't talk back like some smartass manga aficionado. Watch your mouth, punk."

"Noted." I said back, mouth agape seeing such terrifying woman right in front of me. I have all the reasons to believe she's the one behind all of this mess and the fact that I'm having a day-off from school, my classmates and my girlfriend. I want to kiss her for giving me such a nice opportunity, but I shouldn't, considering that if she knows who I am, than I can only expect trouble. "So, you might be the one behind this whole ordeal, if you know who I am, that might be the reason for such. The only thing I want to know besides that is: what happened to my classmates? What happened to Kuoh academy? My classmates, the staff?"

"My, my, what a horrible thing to say for yours truly. Are you implying that this scenario is a repeated one, one which has become quite known by thee? How pokey? After all, exclusivity is something I deserve, and even when something is quite similar, there is nothing like the other, at least by the other side." She answers me nothing, but she did drop a hint about this place, whatever I can take from that. A world 'by the other side'? I want to know what that means. The woman then stands up on the table with her socketed feet and makes a pose with a V-sign around her eye, like an idol would. "How bothersome, how terrible. Someone like me, to be called a repeating event, has thou no shame in badmouthing a lady, Kokuto Kurokami? The son of the Governor General of the Grigori? It hurts my feelings, it pains my heart. You can feel it too, correct?"

"…" I said nothing, only continue to look at her, as her rosy lips turn into a forced upward arc, and her brow twitches, provoked. Suddenly, *PUF!*, her flowery kimono puffs into a curtain of black smoke, and in no time, as it was morphing right in front of my eyes, that woman was wearing a black winter school uniform.

"How about now? Is this more of your liking? The beauty of the traditional Japanese garments, morphed now into the perversion for a healthy young man. Is this more of your liking? Or should I change into something else?" And her school uniform puffs yet again, now morphing into a black Chinese dress, fan and all, as she blinks at me yet again. I scoff a bit, and noticing this, puff it goes once again to now change into the uniform of an office lady, then to a cheerleader outfit, a bikini, then to a princess dress, cosplay, maid, several other costumes. In the end, she morphed her clothes to the Kuoh male uniform, and sat back on her seat. "I can change into anything you'd like, anything I'd like, anything anyone would like. But I ask you, what should I change into next? In order to make this encounter as unique as possible?"

"I don't mind you staying in male uniform. I don't mind anything at all, because in the end, this is another occurrence to me. Sorry to say this, but regardless of your outfit, I just want to go home." I sincerely say, blinking once again. The woman across me sighs, then opens a smile, a malicious one too, and then makes a 'fox head' with her hand, little and pointer finger up while her middle and ring finger touch her thumb.

"So you rather turn this encounter with me into another dull event instead of something meaningful or exciting? How bothersome, how terrible. This is a bad way to waste away your youth such as this, Kokuto Kurokami. To turn the events of today, tomorrow and yesterday, as if to die someday, is the spice that one gives life. Life that is not found here, in the Mirror world of reality."

"Mirror world?" I parroted her once, and she opens her smile to a full laughter, showing me her fanged mouth and black eyes, as a shadow of a fox starts to hover around her, and the glass around me starts to shatter and break.

"Yes, that jikininki did a good job in dragging you here. Once it spotted you, to the blank world of reflections it took you, the ethereal world of the Youkais between reality and fantasy, the gap between the humans and us. I was afraid that girl you met would ruin my plan, but, oh, she is someone who lives daily between the lines of our worlds, so she didn't notice a thing with you in the mirror world." The fox laughs, and before I could even say anything else, from her pocket she picked a cellphone, dialed a number and soon enough, I could feel the ringing on my own pocket. I took my cellphone and notice that the caller ID was the same emergency dial from this morning. "Also, how idiotic you need to be in order to think any form of law enforcement would listen to you in the real world? ' _Yes, wait a minute Mister Kurokami, we shall instruct you how to deal with your jikininki problem after we deal with some bothersome tengus on another line'_. Such magnificent ignorance, you present."

"Y'know, if you knew what kind of stuff I've been dealing with in just this month, you would at least give me a chance to explain myself." I deadpan, and out of nowhere another head of fox appears from the floor and tries to snag a bite out of me! I jump away, put myself standing on the floor, and turn back to the woman by the other side. Bad move, that small distraction was enough for another fox to come and bite part of my hand off! However, instead of becoming a bloody mess, it simply vanished like smoke, leaving a black wound where originally was, I can still clench my hand and move it, but part of it is gone. I turned back to the fox, and out of nowhere a bit of flesh materialized on her own, her pale complex adopting a bit of color as she clenches her left hand, the left hand that I lost a few times, laughing to herself. "You…"

"But stupid or not, it interests me not. For being half-human, however, it makes you powerful enough of blood to become the perfect vessel for yours truly, while still humane so there are no ways for you to counter my possession. Yes, yes, a vessel well-veiled for yours truly, for me to ascend back to the world of the living, and pay my revenge against those who wronged me!" And then she shoots her hand up, as black rufous tails suddenly sprout from her derriere as her entire face contorts into a ferocious and bloodthirsty expression of pure chaos, even the classroom starting to morph to her intimidating aura. "Once I'm done with you, I shall possess your physical body and use it to escape the mirror world, into the living world where my enemies await their judgment! Be grateful, Kokuto Kurokami, for I, **Tamamo-no-Mae** , shall take control over you and bath in the tears and blood of those who have wronged me! I shall ascend towards earth, and to the heavens themselves, tainting my ways in the beauty of the one and only FOX OF THE CELESTIAL WEARS, WHOSE BEAUTY AND POWER RIVAL GODS!"

"In your dreams." I said as I summoned Tama from my hand and pull from my briefcase a hilt in which I pull the trigger and create a light sword from it. I don't understand much from what's going on right now, but apparently that jikininki from before dragged me to this fake world of youkais in order for this Tamamo-no-Mae to use my body as a vessel or something because of my heritage. I don't know her history or whatever, but nobody orders my body at all, no one, not even a celestial fox of godly wears. She sharpens her eyes back at my defiance, and makes another fox head with her hands.

"So, you choose defiance instead of acceptance. As expected from the son of the watcher. But that shall save you not, as now, in my presence, your fate with death has been sealed even in the womb of your mother, now perish, and be the stepping stone for the new legend of Tamamo-no-Mae." And then she summons more and more fox heads from the shadows, all of them reaching for me. I guess this is happening again! Whatever, I am Kokuto Kurokami, and even now, in this twisted new world, luck shall side with me.

"Bring it on then, Miss Tamamo. Come, okay?"

"Kon."

Ah, I knew it! I just made a pun again!


	18. Fox Butterfly and Black Blade

**As always, a new chapter for it to read and I had a nice time writing it. Maybe a little on the shorter side, but this is only to be a little more experimental on the supernatural side of the story, as well as stabilish a new arc with a bit of continuity regarding new and old chapters. For the reviewers saying about the lack of the dxd characters, don't worry, I'll start working on it from this chapter on, and maybe I can deal with them a bit better. Maybe even make the mc pay his father a little visit. Who knows. But as always, R &R and have a nice day.**

 **DxD belongs to Ishibumi and its respective magazines. OC's and alike are mine.**

* * *

 _'Surprise, surprise! Kurokami is asleep again...'_

 _'Is everything he ever does in class, sleeping during lectures, all alone. It's a bit gross, too, even for a transferred guy...'_

 _'It's a shame, too. He certainly is cute.'_

 _'Ew~, don't say that. He might hear you and want to talk to you...'_

 _'Creepy~...'_

"Fue…?" And I open my eyes, and here I am back in Kuoh academy, waking up in another sunny day, being bathed by the sunlight outside, and hearing the typical insults from my classmates. Wait, what's happening? I feel like… I was doing something else, with someone else, and today was not a sunny day. But here I am, with drool rolling down my mouth and with a bruised cheek for spending quite a while with my face on the desk. Somehow, I feel sleepier than usual, and my eyes hurt for some reason. Maybe I had a nightmare or something, I can't quite remember.

Everrything sounds and looks perfectly fine now though: the sun in high in the sky, the corridors of Kuoh are blossoming with life and those same girls which I found out were devil heiresses all along being followed and admired by her peers, and like always, here I am, taking my usual nap during lunchtime and waiting for Yuki to show up so we can have lunch together, like always. Such a nice, warm day, it means that my visit to the Himejima temple won't be as bad as I thought it would…

Wait, what?

 ***RISK! RISK! RISK!***

"Huh…" I was snap back to reality once I start hearing the sound of writing dangerously close to me, as if someone is drawing something right beside me. I turn around to see the source of that sound for what's worth of my free time only to realize that it is my own hand that was writing something on my desk. My own hand, moving on its own without me noticing, writing something on the desk… Wait, what? "What the hell…?"

And then my hand drops the pen it was holding, making it roll away from my desk into the floor. I took a glance at my now scribbled desk, and all I see are coordinates and numbers, maps and directions, all while my phone that only now I notice was beside me this whole time instead of in my pocket was recalculating the coordinates to a certain temple out Kuoh. The Himejima temple, to be more specific, which does ring a bell now. The question now is, why am I feeling so compelled about it now? I'm a bit nauseous, too.

"Good morning, Kokkun. How rare of you to be awake at this time of the day. I feel a bit sadden for not waking you up today, like I got late for an appointment." And again, out of nowhere, Yuki appears in order to take a seat and put her lunchbox right on my desk, munching on some sandwhich as I snap back at her. My nausea stops right there and my eyes turn to her, with me sitting back. She looks back, we cross eyes. "But it surprises me not, considering that you have been acting strange since this morning."

"Really? I didn't notice at all." I mumble to anyone but myself, instead turning to the scribbles and handmade maps written on my desk, trying my best to figure what those mean and why the sudden interest besides finding the killing stone hidden somewhere there. Also, how do I know they have one of those killing stones? Maybe I'm not getting enough sleep as of lately. I turn to Yuki and blink a few more times, holding my head low to think with myself a bit. "I think that I don't feel so hot today. Must be the climate change or something…"

"I must say, it's quite a revenge you gave to me, pretending to be sick only to come to school only today…" She sighs with herself while cupping her own face in a sign of disbelief and exhaustion, and I can't help but to feel a bit like a bastard for missing school yesterday and leave her alone and why the hell can't I remember that? Why can't I remember that I missed school yesterday? I don't remember that at all, yet I feel like I did go to school and met someone under really… Unusual and unfortunate circumstances. But I can't remember anything else. Maybe I slept through the whole day? I feel some pain! Stinging! It hurts! I blink again and turn to Yuki, who has been pinching my cheek awake! "But I swear, you pull one of those pranks again, and I will make sure you lose some of your depth perception. It means that I will poke one of your eyes out if you get ot of line again, understand? Understand?"

"Okay, okay. Sorry for that, please stop pinching my cheeks, it hurts." I said, holding her wrist a little so that she would let go of me. Might as well break her hand so that she won't touch me that way ever again, this little skank, but of course I won't do it because she's my not!girlfriend and I'm not that type of violent person, which makes me wonder why did I ever think of that in the first place because even though she is a whore who deserves none of my time and effort, she's still my only way to fully live my highschool life and I shouldn't be calling her a bitch even though would've never done such. Maybe the lack of sleep is really messing with my mind. I let go of her before I could break her hand or anything. "I just need to pump myself a little get some rest. I think I'm slipping a little on my schedule…"

"Perhaps some tea might help you. Chamomile is always a plus for tiresome people…"

"What did you say?"

"Chamomile is always a plus for tired people. Have some." And then she passes me a small bottle of tea. Chamomile, maybe that will indeed help me with that little crisis, so maybe this little bitch is not as bad as I thought she was, because of course she's my not!girlfriend. I pop the thing open, take a quick sip out of it and take a deep breath after it, I feel a bit better now,if not a bit anxious because I can feel a _DRAGON COMING RIGHT INTO ME…!_

 ***ZOOOM!***

 ***BAM!***

"Ow! What the hell…!"

"Oi, Hyoudou, are you okay?!"

"Nice throw, Kokkun." And I blink again back to reality, and notice that I was now standing up with my hand extending to a random direction. I look forward into the direction I hear screams and laughs, and I see Hyoudou and his friends, him completely drenched in tea, and the bottle that was at my hand next to him, on the floor. I turn to him, then to Yuki, then at my own hand. What was that all about? I suddenly felt the urge to stay away as far as possible from Hyoudou, like I'm scared of him, and despite the fact that I shouldn't mess with a dragon, I can't understand why I fear him right now. Wait, what? I sit back to pretend nothing happened and ignore the ruckus I caused for the trio. "Don't worry, Kokkun. I understand you wanting to cause as much pain and misery to Hyoudou and his bastard friends as possible, I want that too once in a while. But don't do it like that, it'll get us in trouble, and I'll slice your tongue out for that, understand?"

"I understand, why don't you shut up, you frisky hoe."

"…?"

"…!"

"…"

"…"

…

"If you'd excuse me, I'm going to wash my face…"

"You do that, Kokkun. I hope you drown."

…

What the hell is wrong with you, Kokuto Kurokami? First you don't remember what happened yesterday nor that you even missed school for some reason, and like those little slips are happening and you just called your not!girlfriend a hoe and drenched Hyoudou with tea for no apparent reason. Is my sanity finally starting to give up on me? After all those stressful things that happened last week, I wouldn't be surprised, but even so now I'm starting to get really paranoiac. I'm feeling nauseous again, and I feel like my head will explode at any moment. What is going on now?

Calm down, Kokuto Kurokami, calm down. Like always, the moment you lose track of yourself is the moment you lose everything. I walk towards the sinks and wash my face a little, drying myself and then turning to the mirror, at my own reflection. I feel nothing different from the usual, and despite the bags under my eyes, there are no signs of any illness or derangement. Besides, the left red eye is really charming and really complements my naturally black hair and When the hell did I get a left red eye, anyway?! I take a closer look and bit once, twice. No, not contacts or an illusion, one of my eyes, for some reason, has a red tint on the iris. Not only that, the pupil is slit like an animal's. Is this an illusion or something? But the pupil moves as I move, up and down, up and down, but even so…

You shouldn't probably don't think too much of it. After all, these kinds of things have become routine ever since you discovered from that Tobio guy who your father is and how this world is larger than you could possibly imagine, so maybe a change of fashion is not one of your biggest problems or changes right now. Yeah, maybe this is it, I'm just thinking too much about something that, if anything, this little change is an improvement, don't you think? Yeah, it's an improvement, in some way… Wait, what was that about?

"Kurokami…?"

"Professor Takashiro?" I turned around to see the history professor, who's a tall, grizzly man with glasses and a few wrinkles looking at the mirror with me, at his own reflection. He adjusts the tie of his uniform, wash his hands and coughs a few times. I draw a half-assed smile at him. "I'm sorry, professor. I think I'm not in my high spirits today. I might be going crazy, must be the weather or something…"

"You shouldn't worry about that, Kurokami. At your age, it is normal to feel a bit overblown and saturated. Just take your pace and a deep breath, and you'll be okay. Otherwise, you might end up like me." He concludes wiping the remaining water on his hands with paper and again adjusting his tie. I draw an interrogation mark above my head. Ending up just like him? What does he mean by this? I feel like I'm missing something in this equation.

"End up like you? What do you mean, professor?" I question him with a tilt from my head. He finishes wiping off his hands, adjusts his tie one last time, and turned to me, only to shine me a smile.

"Because you're here."

"…?"

"Didn't you notice it, Kurokami? We're in the women's bathroom."

"Wait, what?"

 _'KYAAAAAAAH…! HELP! THERE ARE SOME PERVERTS IN THE WOMEN'S BATHROOM…!'_

…

Okay, now I know something fishy is going on around here. I should've notice that I was going to the female bathroom no matter how screwed my mind would be at the moment, but I didn't for some reason, some reason that I should search for before I end up in this situation again: beaten by half of the female population of Kuoh academy and suspended by the ankles on a nearby tree, accompanied by Professor Takashiro and two other members of the Perverted Trio. For some reason, Hyoudou is not around, and I'm glad because that dragon can only mean trouble for me… Wait.

"Y'know, Lord Kurokami. You don't seem like that type that would do such things. It eases my heart to know that are some of our kind even among the snubby-looking lummoxes of society." The shaven-headed one said with a toothy grin despite some of them lacking after the beating.

"Indeed. Lord Kurokami is a Silverlight among the cloudy words of hypocrites and fuccbois. I'm proud of you." The other pervert with glasses smile, despite the fact that some shards of his own glasses were stuck in his eyeballs.

"So is youth, so is youth, sir Motohama, Sir Matsuda." Professor Takashiro says with an upside-down nod at us, his bloody smile of acceptance indicating his approval. For that, I have no words for anyone or anything but…

"Please, be quiet."

Fortunately, after a while, the classes were over, and despite my little fight with her earlier, Yuki came over and helped me get down from the tree despite the fact that she didn't have any obligation to do it. It was a nice gesture for a little whore like her, and I'm happy to have her as my not!girlfriend. Ah, I'm again losing control for some reason, I'm glad that won't tarnish my reputation any further in Kuoh academy, and since she still needs me, Yuki will forgive me this time. But now every move has to be cautious, so I'll have to pay attention to my surroundings and actions and get home, fast. Then and only then, at the safety of my own home, I'll be able to figure what to do…

But really, what is going on? First my hand started to move on its own and messing with phone with drawing something with a pen, then I started to think too much about my relationship with Yuki and my own actions and fears started to blurry, so much I ended up throwing a bottle of tea at Hyoudou for no reason and entering the women's bathroom without noticing at all. Am I going crazy? Again? Is my sanity starting to bleed away like in that Kon's movie? Also, what's with the Himejima temple that has been appearing all the time in those annotations? I can see the search history in my phone, and maybe that can help me figure what is happening: The Himejima temple, a famous Shinto temple taken care by the Himejima family which are said to be a family of exorcists not very far from here, I just need to hop around the S-station and wait for the T-train in order to reach the Y-district in no time, and so I enter the place which wasn't all that full and wait a little since it's on the next station, so I drop by it and after a small walk around X-road I finally reach…

"Wait…!" Too late! I snap back one more time, and when I tried, it was too late: the doors of the subway closed and departed from the S-station to near the Himejima temple in the H-Station. Just feeling the wagon moving I could already feel my entrails starting to mix and my stomach to burn. Why did I even pick the train?! I can't stand very well, so I sit lazily on a nearby seat, looking outside and feeling the nausea build up inside me. No good, no good at all, something is really fishy around here! I need to go back home and fix a way out of this!

Or maybe… Temple Himejima. Himejima. That's Himejima's surname, and they say the Himejima are a family of exorcists, you saw with your own eyes, Kokuto Kurokami. That Himejima girl burning the Jukininki with exorcism flames, maybe she can help you with that problem as well. She's a nice person, of course she'll help you. Yeah, Himejima knows about this supernatural stuff better than I do, and as much as I hate to be in debt with someone, I can't use my wits against something I can't understand or see. I hate to say this, but luck has not sided with me today. I have only one option now: I'll have to find Himejima to help me. I'm already going there anyway for some reason, I can't let this opportunity go to waste, because if this continues… If this continues…

After a quick barf at the nearest trashbin, I finally reached for the H-station, the station closest to the Himejima temple. I look on my phone for the directions, following the red arrow leading to the place. Turns out, I didn't even need it since the temple stood out like a sore thumb in the middle of the otherwise empty district. No matter, no matter, I have no time to lose in that, I have to find himejima and be done with this before I lose control or worse.

The Himejima temple, the largest one around near the mounts of the H-district and known to house the famous Himejima clan of exorcists. A giant palace blessed by the Gods with a monumental size and several yards of fields and statues and offerings for them. As I ran up the stone stairs leading to the temple and passing through the several red gates, I could feel my left eye starting to burn for some reason, as if it wanted to jump off its socket! In the end, I reached for the main gate leading to the temple, facing a yardful of fields filled with statues, seals and a rock formation leading to the giant temple. Arrogant as always, ain't you, Suou? Seeing my presence, a bunch of mikos appeared in order to reach me, and in the middle of them… Himejima. That Himejima girl who helped me the other day. Just in time…

"Kurokami? You here? What gives?" She reaches for me and opens her typical smile, a graceful and beautiful smile, typical of a Himejima, even though I just know her and that other Himejima from Kuoh to have that assumption. I take my time to regain my breath since I was running all the way from the base of the mountain up here, and turned to her with a bit of a blush. She's so sweet somehow, it's such a shame, really. But she has to go. I look around, and one of the priestesses started to look uneasy, I wonder if she noted something. I turn back to Himejima, and she notices my uneasiness. "Kurokami? Are you okay? How… How can I help you?"

"Himejima, please…" I said, reaching for her helping hand, and in no time, I formed my fox head for her. From this point, I can definitely, without a doubt… "… Could you please die for me?"

"Huh…?"

"Lady Suzaku, watch out…!"

" **Kon**."

 ***BITE!***

"I missed." And it all happened in a spam of a second. For some reason, I made a fox head with my hand that was extending to Himejima, and out of the shadows, a demonic fox head sprints towards her, and if it wasn't for that meddlesome miko, I would be able to rip her to pieces. Well, no matter, at least the Kon was able to bite half of that miko's body completely, splattering blood everywhere much to my horror! Himejima and the remaining miko landed a few feet away from me, and looked at me with horror. I turn to them. "I won't miss next time, Himejima. Next time… It'll be you."

"Kurokami, what are you…?" She starts to question me, and I can already feel the tears blurring the vision on my right eye, while the vision of the other eye is dead set on them, I just need to get a bit closer to use kon once again, even though now I know that she'll be even more careful now. Her stare becomes a bit more serious, and she looks right into me. "No, you're not Kurokami… You possessed him. I can see."

"Wait, what?" I wonder to myself. Wait, I am… Possessed? So how can I still think with myself? But… Those thoughts, those actions, my instincts kicking all the time, the amnesia, it does make sense and she'll know better than onyone, but how… It is because of my fallen angel side? Yes, it is. I thought I would be able to subjugate that side, but I could only be able to control the human part. Thanks Azazel for that, Kokuto Kurokami. Wait, that isn't me, that isn't me at all! You're right, Kurokami. It ain't you…

It's me!

 **Tamamo**!

Now, let's get that killing stone from old man Suou and help in my resurrection!


	19. Stop Hanging Holy Men!

**Another chapter? Another chapter! This time twice as long and with some good climax and tying some loose ends regarding Kokuto's posession, Tamamo and his current relationship with girl #2, darling Suzaku? No spoilers as for now, but at least the canon characters are getting a bigger role from now on, and no, I'm not trying that hard this tme... Maybe. I did my best with this chapter, so I only hope that it turned out good! As always, don't forget to R &R and have a fun read and some ideas we might share with a review.**

 **a little final NOTE: My MC's** **schizophrenia gets really, really worse and messier this chapter, so watch out for those since he literally has dialogue inside his head... But I believe in you all, you'll figure it who is talking with who and when.**

 **dxD belongs to Ichiei Ishibumi and its respective magazines. All the OC's are mine, tho.**

* * *

Wait, wait, wait, I think I'm beginning to understand what is happening right now… _Kinda_.

So what happened yesterday really happened, and I ended up in an illusionary version of my school for some reason, ended up fighting Lady Tamamo-no-Mae the cursed nine-tailed fox, and… Lost. I lost to her and ended up possessed, completely losing my memories about the whole ordeal because the sense of loss and humiliation probably did a tilt in my head so I wouldn't remember such embarrassing moment. What? I'm a normal guy, to forget any embarrassment and cringey moments of my life is the natural response for those. I guess I lack some maturity in that too, among other things…

And now here we are: Lady Tamamo, using my possessed body to stroll around the Himejima temple while killing some nuns and priests around with not a single care in the world, either with her cursed flames or her kon ability, all while Himejima is keeping her distance and throwing her paper talismans at me, all to no use since Lady Tamamo's diabolical aura would burn them in midair…

"Hanging around~; Nothing to do but frown~; rainy days and Mondays always get me doooown~…" I sang as I kicked another nun's decapitated head across this stinky temple, all while her cohorts would scream in terror and anger. Man, it has been such a while since I terrorized people like that, it feels nice and comfy, like I just changed underwear after a long day of work! Hey, Lady Tamamo, if you don't mind, I rather you not keep killing so indiscriminately while in my body. Also, I know The carpenters are a nice band and all, but don't sing them with my body, I don't want to sound like an old man! Oh, so you're still here, Kurokami? Well, since we're sharing a body and all, I guess I can comply with some of my host's demands. I hear a scream, and another priest approaches me with a exorcist lance at hand. I make a fox sign at him. "Kon!"

 ***BITE!***

 _'GYAAAAAAH! TATSUYA! HE'S KILLED TATSUYA!'_

Lady Tamamo, this is the opposite that you were supposed to do! You just chopped that guy's head off! Hey, don't judge me like that, Kurokami, you saw how he was charging at me, everything I did that moment was in self-defense, now if you excuse me, I'm going to enter the main temple and give that old Fart Suou a friendly hello, it has been so long, after all. I kicked the head on the floor away to a random direction and continued to stroll to said temple, all while the nuns and priests around were getting smarter and decided to run for their lives. I guess they don't make exorcists like they used to, I miss Abe a little, now he was a true exorcist. Please stop filling my mind with dirty thoughts, Lady Tamamo. I want to sleep well if I don't die…

"This is the farthest that you shall go, evil spirit." And then to my surprise one of those foolish exorcists are dumber than I thought: In front of me there was a tall, well-endowed and dark-haired miko holding several of paper seals on her hand and praying beads on another, not to mention that her scent is not unfamiliar to me. Ohohoh, so Suou, that arrogant and petty little man bore children, that is… Disturbingly unlike him. I think it's best to think that his whore of a sister bore some descendants instead, yeah that's more like it. I don't know what you're talking about, but I think you have some bad blood with Himejima's family. You bet I have, and this girl won't be an exception. "To possess someone like Kurokami and use his ingenuity as a way to bypass Himejima defenses. You truly reveal yourself as the wickedest of all Youkai."

"I don't know what you're talking about, Suzaku dear. I'm just your lovely Kokuto Kurokami, strolling around the Himejima temple to appreciate the view and say hello to the honourable Suou Himejima, the one who sealed the dreadful yet unparalleled beautiful Tamamo-no-Mae a few decades ago, alongside the other members of the five families, and is hiding one of the killing stones, which are necessary for her beautiful resurrection." I said with a pose, hand on one hip while touching the middle of my collarbone, flashing her the biggest and most daring smile I could muster with this lad's rigid facial muscles. Hey, with all due respect, Lady Tamamo, this impression was distasteful. Let me handle this a little since she can tell me apart from you. Alright, fine. I regain control over my body and slap myself a few times on the face in order to ease the muscles there. Huh, she's right, I'm a bit cold-faced. Now, to the matter at hand. "Hey, Himejima. It's me, Kokuto Kurokami. Really, it's me. Now, if you excuse me, I want to know what this Suou man is hiding so that I can pick it up and Tamamo can leave my body alone."

"…" She lowers her head a little, and that actually makes me a little concerned. I mean, she did say I could always count of her when something like this happens, so why the long face just now? Oh lad, do you really think you can get rid of me so easily? No, of course not! That is why I'm asking for her help of all places! But her face… Is not an assuring one. At all. She turns her face to me yet again and arches her eyes like an eagle. "I'm so sorry, Kurokami, but I cannot handle you what Tamamo-no-Mae is asking. But don't worry, I shall exorcize her from your being and set you free from her clutches."

"…" Wait. Wait, wait ,wait. Am I hearing this right? She's refusing to help me after all of those promises she made between us? That's unfair! That doesn't make any sense! She has been a huge pain on my ass ever since we met and now she refuses to help me?! And that just for a rock?! My life for her means less than a goddamn stone?! Me, Kokuto Kurokami, the man who always has luck by his side?! I see her approaching me with a piece of paper at hands, and so without losing momentum, I lifted a hand and shoved my finger into this lad's right eye sockets, making it bleed as I crushed his eyeball with my nails. Suzaku gasps in horror as I smile. AH! What the hell, Lady Tamamo?! "Don't make a move, Suzaku dear. I have complete control over this lad's body. As unique as he might be, he's just another vessel that I can find anywhere and anytime, so if you really values this boy, or any human life as your so-called clan claims, you will step aside and let me do what I want to do. Who knows, maybe you both can live and have a little date afterwards this whole chaos."

"Evil spirit of the lowest of scum, you shall not curse this world any longer." She rasps her voice and arrows me with her eyes, and in one moment she vanishes from my sight. A moment, it was just in a moment, but I look up and there she was hovering in the air, using her vermillion bird as a way to fly from us. She didn't even give me a second to think, she let go of the sacred beast and tried to land next to me! I jumped away from her reach, as she unleashed a curtain of flames on her arrival and from it, emerged with vengeance on her eyes, ready to strike! Feisty, ain't she? Can't say I dislike it! I do! I know, you good-for-nothing eunuch hybrid! "I shall eliminate you forever so you can leave Kurokami alone!"

And crimson red flames start to emerge from her palms as she tries yet fails to reach me! Hahah, no, if that flame touches me even a little bit, she'll burn my essence alongside Kokuto's, and I can see she doesn't want that either. Wait, she's going for the kill?! And I thought I could trust her! There are only us among here, and even will her entire will, she couldn't catch thanks to this lad's frame, which was so light and malleable, I can't believe it's from a male! Flame there, flame here, and Suzaku slips a little, which gave me an good opportunity! I kicked her right on the face, causing a wound to open and bleed a little, and jumped a good distance between us, landing myself on a little monastery which was burning just right, taking a good look around the place I've just wrecked: corpses and heads everywhere, crimson blames blazing everything to ashes, complete and utter hopeless from everyone and everything fleeing on my presence, and a Himejima on its knees, ready to give up, while I stand tall and mighty, as I always should. Oh, how I missed those feelings…

"My, oh My. You're adorable, Suzaku dear, but you're skills are a bit lacking, all things considered. Of course, before you is the mother of all Youkai, the linchpin of the ethereal and supernatural world, the one and only Tamamo-no-Mae! Any exorcist, even those who share lineage with the likes of Himejima, are no match for the likes of me!" I boast as I look down to the pretty girl downwards, which was caressing her affected cheek and getting rid of the blood there. I'm sorry lad, but if she wants to stay in my way, she has to go. I'll try not to kill her since I just want the killing stone, but I guess she's also quite the hard cookie, right? … Nothing? Okay then. "If you value your life, then stand aside and let me have a little chat with Suou. This doesn't concern you, so be free to withdraw from this battlefield before you become a number on tomorrow's obituary, darling."

"Vermillion Bird, full force." I hear her say, and out of nowhere, I hear something cutting through the air! Too fast even for me, in that same moment a crimson avian passed right next to me, cutting my leg and making me lose my balance on the monastery! Damn it, I forgot! This body does not possess a tail for me to hold on! I'm gonna crash onto the ground! Before anything else could happen though, I feel the burning power of exorcist flames purifying my wicked existence from my sides, only now noticing it was Suzaku dealing the blow! She made that damn vermillion Bird put me off-balance so she could reach me! Bitch! "You shall not see the end of this day, and the Himejima will put you to sleep once again, Tamamo-no-Mae!"

"Don't get too cocky, spawn of the cursed blood!" I said, pushing myself up and standing tall against her, making a battle pose so I could counter any kind of offensive she might pull. Not even after that, that damn crimson chicken flew right next to me trying to get my other functional eye! That was enough of a distraction for Dear Suzaku to come forward, this time reaching for my left arm and purifying it, making me lose control of it as it went limp! Curses, I have to keep distance from her. I jump back yet again and stood up, trying yet failing to retake control over Kokuto's body. I can't longer move my left burnt arm or anything from my left side for that matter, and I can slowly feel the burning sensation wearing me down. "Curses. So it seems that I've underestimated this generation's own weaponry and abilities. I think I owe you an apology, dear Suzaku. With that out of the way, I'm gonna kick your arse until it's flat as asphalt."

Please don't use my mouth to curse, Lady Tamamo, this is really tarnishes my image…

"Please refrain from using such vulgar language with Kurokami's voice. It seriously disturbs me." Ah, look at that, she cares for your wellbeing and image too, lad. That's cute and all, you should value her affection or something, even an old lady like me understands that. But I rather not play the matchmaker just now, considering how I'm dealing with an exorcist now, so better not get too distracted. That annoying bird is still flying right around us, and without one of my eyes, it'll hard to keep track of them. Oops, shouldn't've destroyed this lad's eye just to prove a point. Oh well. "Now, prepare to face your destruction, evil spirit."

"If anyone will face their destruction, tis not here, dear Suzaku. As for giving me a vessel, I shall spare you and Suou in honor of Kokuto Kurokami. Doesn't mean I won't break your ass in the meantime, however." I crack my knuckles a few times, and with no other words being shared between us, we clashed once again. I used my own lame arm as a whip in order to slap Suzaku away from sealing my other arm, all while kicking that flying bother before it could also burn me to a crisp. I jumped backwards to gain some space, cracking my neck too just to show off. "This lad lacks strength and magical power to the limit, but he's quite agile and light for someone his age. It feels like I just got out of a relaxing bath in a Spring in Yokohama. I just feel like the best! Too bad it'll reduce his lifespan a bit if this takes to much…"

"I won't allow you to do as you please with his body!"

"Then let me pass and get what I want, you Himejima whore! You Whoremejima!" And I boosted my feet in order to clash with dear Suzaku yet again. This time, however, I was careless: the moment we were about to touch fists, I piece of parchment came down flying from me by the side, slapping me right on the blind side of my pierced right eye and unleashing a current of magical electricity through the lad's entire body!

I lose control over the body as it falls to the ground and out of nowhere that damn bird comes from the shadows to hit me in the face yet again! I roll on the floor, feeling the exorcist powers running across this body and making it numb to it, as I hit a stone bench to stop me from rolling even more. Ouch, this whole body is getting weaker and weaker and I can't longer control it, every part of it is cracking and I feel this last one broke a few bones. I look forward and all I can see is dear Suzaku and the vermillion Bird coming at this direction ready to strike, but my possession to this body is too weak to even move out of the way. I lift a hand to try to make the Kon again, but it was no use, the bird is too fast and is ready to seal me for good! And even if I could do something about that fried chicken, dear Suzaku is also coming this way!

"Vermillion Bird, sealing flames! In the names of the Gods who reside in Shinto, be set free from this world evil spirit of malice, and undo your misdeeds for the likes of man and Gods!" She chants while boosting her powers over her sacred beast, which was now shining golden and with blessings practically using from its being, as bright and hot as the burning Sun! Damn it, she won't just exorcize me, those flames will put me too sleep yet again! I can't move, my connection to this body is getting weaker and weaker and thanks to that seal I can't cut my connection with Kokuto! At this rate I have no choice but to Call for Crimson King!

Wait, what?

"Crimson King!" And before they could hit my body with all of those blessings and whatnot Lady Tamamo was talking about, I summoned from my ring Crimson King, and from it a spear made out of flames emerged, right in time so I could stab that vermillion bird right on the one of its wings and screw its way from one side to another, completely shredding his body! It worked as the flying screamed in pain and fell onto the ground, just a few inches from me but enough to avoid me!

"Vermillion Bird! No!" I hear Himejima's exasperated scream for her pet while turning her face to look in horror at it. At this little slip, I changed Crimson King's form to that of the nunchuck and knocked her away from me, electrifying her whole being in the process! She came down crashing sideways away from me, and with the new control over my body, I stand up and stretch myself a bit. I always hear about those spiritual posessions in movies and series, but all things considered, it doesn't feel all that bad, just a little stiff and all.

Wait, wait, Dear Kokuto, was this your doing? I do not understand such, capable of moving your body again, yet choosing to attack your possible saviours in my place? How bizarrely kind of you. I tilt my head to a side hearing the feminine voice in my head, and sighed a little. It's not that I am sentimental, Lady Tamamo, and I do want to get rid of you as fast as possible, but seeing how… Aggressive Himejima has been and since I have no doubt that you also want to get free from my body as much as me, I rather help you that being burnt by her and her sacred beast something. Huh, how adorable of you, darling Kokuto, maybe I've misjudged you. You have my blessings, although such from an evil spirit such as myself is maybe not the best for you. I don't refuse gifts, Lady Tamamo, this is a thing gentleman do. Huh, I'm glad…

"Well, no time wasting here. I'm going to find this Suou guy and get that stone out of him. I feel like a mad titan already…" I snicker to myself, picking the flower out of my head and turning into a pearl-white scythe, sticking it to the ground while white supernatural roots sprouted from the ground and started to cover the fallen vermillion bird. And so the holy embrace firmly grasps the vermillion bird and put it to sleep, meaning that even if it wakes up, it'll hold it for a second or two and allow me for a quick escape. Thinking ahead, I like that. You're in my head, you know for a record that I'm a cautious person. True, but that's also cute somehow, and not creepy… Maybe a little.

"Kurokami… Why?" Hey, head's up, lucky man, your little lady is calling for you. I turn around to the direction both of us were hearing that voice, and there she was, Suzaku Himejima, still flinching and twitching like a legless cockroach on the floor while her body is still charged with electricity, a look of both doubt and sadness over her eyes. Oh crap, I made a girl sad, this is something not even the worst of scum should do. You're being overdramatic, Kokuto dear, she'll live if she's anything like even the weakest of her ancestors, besides, giving pity to your adversaries is a bad move specially regarding a Himejima. I know, but it's still a bad move, and she's not an adversary, just an obstacle. If you say so. I turn to her and summon Luvah once again to tap the tip on the floor.

"Nothing personal, Himejima. It's just that, between being burnt alive and trusting a fox demon that has been known to trick humans to do her bidding while sucking the life out of them and whose postmortem form takes the shape of a killing stone that brings doom and death via touch… I'm going to go with her. Again, nothing personal, I just want you out of my back for a while, so just rest ease there and help others. I'm going inside and kick Suou's ass until he's shitting through his mouth and burping out of anus." I bite my tongue so more of Tamamo's own thoughts would not leave my mouth, and little by little the vines started to embrace her too. I see her reaching for inside her outfit trying to pull another enchanted parchment, but electricity ran all over her again, making her let go of it. Out of caution, I made a kon and made the fox head munch on her arms. Hey, that's not what I wanted, Lady Tamamo! What the hell! Relax, I'm just going to bite her arms a little so she won't move them, I won't take them off or anything. You want her alive, right? Although they might hurt a lot. That's the last straw, you play with me again, and the deal is off, okay? Okay. I turn to the bleeding girl, who was now crying. Oh great, I've made her cry now. "My bad, Himejima. I didn't want that to happen, but it's out of my hand, but look on the bittersweet side: she could've killed you."

"You… I thought you were different… Kurokami… How could you?" She starts to murmur to herself, and I couldn't feel more guilty than making a girl cry. This is so humiliating, I feel like crying myself if that makes any sense. I sniff my nose a little, turn to her and with a very heavy voice, I called her name one last time.

"Himej-… _Suzaku_ …?"

"Huh…?"

 ***KICK!***

"And now we're even." And the guilt is gone. I was about to ease her pain and release her from her shackles, but then I remembered: this lady just ruined my uniform with her flames and her damn bird, so in a fit of righteous rage I lift a leg and kicked her right in the teeth, making her spit blood while knocking her out, her head shooting backwards as Luvah's vines finished tying her up. Now it's my time to ask what the hell is wrong with you. Sorry, what can I say, it was a spurt of the moment, I was really mad and this is the second ruined uniform just this month! I need better control my temper sometimes, at least it wasn't an explosion of emotion, but I have the impression that I've screwed my relationship with her forever. No shit, Sherlock. Enough screwing around, I have an old man to kill. No kill, just pick the stone and go. Okay, but I'll still kick his saggy ass…

And so, with both our minds shared, we walked towards the main temple of the Himejima district, passing around the corpses of those who perished and the blazing temples and flags. It's not a very good view, but I've seen worse for that matter. Dear Suzaku and the Vermillion Bird are taken care of, and all the other exorcists are either dead, agonizing on the floor or just fled from the place. So this only means one thing: it is only me and Suou now. I know I know nothing about this ordeal between Lord Himejima and you, Lady Tamamo, but I think we can solve this whole conflict without shedding any more blood into matters. I mean, he's probably getting ready in there, so why don't we just sneak around the house, snatch ourselves some stones and get away as soon as possible? It's no use, he already knows where we are. As an old fart that he is now, he was an exorcist and is the previous head of a much respected clan. It is ridiculous that he would let his guard down even for an attosecond. So we don't have any other choice, then. Nope, which means…!

 ***KICK!***

" _KNOCK-KNOCK, SUOU! ARE YOU HOME?! I'M HERE TO WRECK YER SHIT_!" And with a smooth kick from the fox, I kick the door down and entered the place, an immense temple decorated in red and golden, filled with statues of the previous heads of the Himejima clan and flaming birds written and decorated everywhere. In the heart of all of that, I see an altar dedicated for an immense statue of a bird covered in crimson, and right below it, sitting on top of his knees, it was an elderly man wearing a crimson black kimono, eyes closed and a katana at hand. Despite the current situation regarding his property, he seems at least at peaceful enough…

"I was not expecting you to reach so far, Lady Tamamo. It seems that my subordinates were unprepared for the likes of you, and may peace be found with them." The elderly man, Suou Himejima apparently, says as he opens his bright purple eyes and stands up from his seating. He turns his eyes at me, and a frown grows on his eyes. "But for them to lose not to Tamamo, but a simple vessel not older than that little traitorous whore, who has just like her tainted blood, they deserve what has been coming to them. Even Suzaku, the pride of Himejima, fell for such. The Himejima today has been humiliated more than ever before in centuries of history!"

"Yeah, yeah, what you're gonna do now, you twat? Your subordinates are all dead, your pride and its fried chicken are peacefully sleeping away for you to hide behind her skirt, and between me and your saggy ass, I'm in better shape than ever before!" I said, ignoring his boasting and walking towards that sad excuse for a head clan. Traitorous whore… Is he talking about upperclassman Himejima? It would make sense. Stopping midway the road between us, I crossed my arms and extended a glare at his furious eyes. "So, unless you want me to turn that overgrown phimosis you call a skin into a trashbag to put your bones and organs for tomorrow's collecting, you better give me the Killing Stone, you old sack of pus."

Hey, Lady Tamamo, please mind your language. Oh, okay fine…

"Give me the stone, please." Now that's a small step, but a step regardless. However, instead of complying with my homely request, Lord Himejima instead let out a sweat run down his forehead, and puts up his sword in defiance. I have a really bad feeling about this.

"Wrenched fox harlot, watch your mouth speaking to the head of the clan Himejima." He claims, making me roll my eye. He's as arrogant as ever, this old sack of shit. But regardless how Lady Tamamo thinks of him, he has a very dense aura, I can sense those are not idle boasts. "I eradicated you once with father, and shall eradicate you again, but this time, it'll permanent. Prepare to end in the bowls of hell and burn your very existence until nothing is left."

"Uh… This is the original speaking, and I rather have you not." And I take control over my body once again to lift both my hands with fingers up in order to call for Lord Himejima's attention and halt any attempt he might try against my life and Lady Tamamo's. Especially mine, of course. "I mean, I know the grudge between you two and all, but I rather have you not kill me in the crossfire. So, uh, if you don't mind, Lord Himejima, could you please give me the stone so Tamamo can resurrect and get out of my body, and then you can deal with your little affair with me a few dozen miles away…?"

"Quiet, filthy mongrel, son of whore mother and fallen crow father." And he shuts me up without even blinking. Wait, what did he just call my mother?! Before I could take any satisfaction from him, he flicks the handle of his katana, and from the small glimpse I got from the blade, several, dozens of flaming swords suddenly appear floating around me, all ready to strike! "Die alongside the cursed Tamamo-no-Mae, and leave this world that rejects your own tainted existence."

"Wait, what…?"

 ***ZOOOOOM!***

 ***BOOOM!***

…

"Huh… Not worth of my attention. And now, a last song for the cursed ones, leaving this sacred place without…"

"Hah! It's a good thing that I watched all those Bruce Lee movies! Having some magical chucks helps too!" And surprise! The moment I spoke across the flames and the curtain of dust all those assaulting flaming swords caused around me, Lord Himejima shot his head back to me, eyes wide in surprise and shock as I appear in the dust with Crimson King's chuck-form between my arms, my clothes a bit destroyed, but alive and well! Hah, I just deflected a bunch of swords with just my chucks! That's awesome!

"How… How is that possible? The rising sun eagle's technique should've burnt you to a crisp! This is what sealed Tamamo's form last century!" He screams in disbelief, finally dropping that stoic mask his kind likes to put all the time, so I smile with the lad's teeth.

"Yeah, but the lad have seen more movies than you. I gotta say, from what I'm gathering, even some old Chinese ones are in his repertory." I say with a smile, as Crimson King now morphs into a lance to point at Suou's nervous and angry face. I also make a face to mimic him and adopt a frown. "But that's enough about the lad. Give me the stone Suou, or else I'll burn you and your entire temple to the ground and shove its ashes up yours, you little balding, ancestor-dick-sucking little bitch!"

"You DARE…!"

"Yes, I DARE!"

"Petulant Fox whore and Cursed Brat! Your life has ended the moment you decided to face the Head of the great HIMEJIMA CLAN!"

 ***BOOOMM!***

And with only the shockwave of his powerful voice, Lord Himejima blew us away from his temple, also making the entire floor tremble and cracking the roads leading to it! Even with all of our determination, he was powerful enough to launch us away from the temple and into the main yard! Without even losing a moment, the old man jumped from his seat all the way to the entrance of the place, his katana at hand, eyes practically spitting fire, and the aura of something big, intimidating right behind him. It's Kagutsuchi, he only brings the fire homo out when he means business. You're right, darling, he is pissed.

"You shouldn't come here, Tamamo." He says, voice dripping with arrogance and power. "The first time we've met, I was but an uneducated, green, novice exorcist following my father's step. Now, decades later, I am as powerful as him, blessed by Kagutsuchi and with years of experience on my back as one of the previous head of one of the Five Great Families. And what do you have for a vessel? A meek, disgusting and moribund hybrid with no traces of magic or light elements of the likes of him, unlike _that_ little whore. Tell me, how do you expect to get the Killing Stone from these hands?! How can you expect him to defeat me?! What does he possess that makes you so certain of victory, when your demise is right in front of you?!"

"Well, for starters, unlike yours, this body still has a fully-functional dick."

"Fuck you!"

"No, fuck **you**!"

"Fuck you!"

"Fuck you!"

" _FUCK YOU! A THOUSAND TIMES FUCK YOU_!"

" _A MILLION TIMES FUCK YOU_!"

" _A HUNDRED MILLION TIMES FUCK YOU WITH PROTECTION AGAINST OTHER FUCK YO_ U!"

" _A BILLION TIMES PROTECTION-BREAKING FUCK YOU!_ "

" ** _FUCK YOU_**!"

" _ **FUCK YOU**_!"

Hey, I thought this was an old feud between respectful great beings, not the usual M-rated DxD fanfiction…

"TAMAMO…!"

"SUOU…!" And then out of nowhere, with each other holding their weapons with me ready to pick any weapon I might have, they charged at one another, ready to strike. Even the sky started to tremble with the sheer force between the two, and since it is also my body, I moved on my own, also ready to maim this old man and get myself out of this whole fight! And the moment we were about to crash…!

 ***BAM!***

… Out of nowhere, fast as it is, a lightning strike cut the momentum between us, filling the place with light and blinding us for a second. However, this was not the only unexpected thing that happened at the moment: the moment we could finally tell light from dark, in between the feuding duo, a new figure appeared. A tall, muscular, middle-aged looking man with black hair, matching beard and violet eyes in a scowl, wearing something I can only describe as black battle armor. However, the thing that surprised both of us was the fact that he had several black feathered wings coming from his back. A fallen angel? So this is a fallen angel. I wonder if he's also close to my father…

"It seems that I was too late to avoid this place to burn. I knew that something was off, but for an attack to the Himejima temple at this moment… At least I'm sure Suzaku is alright." The man says in a low, gruff yet powerful voice, sparkles flying off his being as if it was a second skin for him. Suou, on the other hand, clenched his teeth, looking at the tall man that was now shielding him from us.

"Lightning of God, what do you search here?" He asks, holding his katana for the fallen angel, but instead of something violent, the fallen angel only turns to him and give him a calm, yet intense stare, only to turn back at us.

"Repentance. I shall end this here and now." He calls for the old fart, and then his stare aims directly at us. Does he know? Of course he knows I'm half fallen angel, and being the big shot Azazel is, no doubt that he's here from him or something. But… Something about repentance, I wonder that at all. Not really. "My name is **Baraqiel** , the lightning of God, and I'm a Cadre of the Grigori. You, Kokuto Kurokami. Cease your madness in the Himejima territory and come with me. I will lead you to your father and we can talk about your current situation and how to help you."

"…"

"…"

…

"Pffff… HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!"

"…?!"

"WHAT THE… PFFFT-HAHAHAHAHHAHAH… WHAT NAME IS THAT?! _BARAQIEL_?! WHAT THE… HAHAHAHAHAH… WHAT? WAS 'GAYLORD TWINKIEFAG' TOO STRAIGHT FOR YOUR PARENTS?! HAHAHAHAHAH!" Okay lad, now you're starting to really scare me. BUT HOLY CRAP?! BARAQIEL?! THAT MEANS 'ROSE OUT OF THE CLOSET', RIGHT?! HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! YOU KNOW THAT'S WHAT IT MEANS, RIGHT?! I know, but this is not the time to be laughing at his stupid name. I KNOW, BUT IT'S SO FUNNY! HAHAHAHAHAH! I THOUGHT AZAZEL OR KOKABIEL WERE BAD, BUT THIS POOR BASTARD TAKES THE WHOLE CAKE AND EATS IT! "HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH…!"

"…"

"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAH… HAHAHAHAH… Hahahah… Hahah… Hah… Phew… Hahah… Hah…"

"…"

"I'm sorry, but I _shall refuse_."

"Kokuto Kurokami, you don't understand…"

"No, it's YOU who don't understand!" I said, standing tall and might after almost falling due to massive laughter. I make a pose, pull Crimson King and morph it to the form of the spear, pointing at him. "I've through a lot of stuff today, and you know what, I'm sick tired of dealing with random people who practically grow from the ground! I'm not some fate's pinball bearing, so unless you have me kicking and screaming and pulling me from the hair to this Grigori place, I'm gonna rip the killing stone off Lord Himejima's hands and be done with this whole thing! And if you want to stay in my way, I'm going to pass right through you, you being friend's with my father or not!"

"Fallen angel, stay back. He and his possession are mine! I shall burn them to a crisp!" Suou spits as he jumps away from the shielding fallen angel and turns back at us. Katana at hand and ready to strike. Baraqiel(*snickers*), however, takes position as well away from both of us.

"I'm not going to allow this." He says, making a sign with his hands, and out of nowhere, sparkles of lightning comes down to it. So he's a reason for the moniker of lightning of God. Suou comes right next to him. "I won't allow you both to destroy the last remains of her memory, and I shall not allow you either of you to die. Kokuto Kurokami, Suou Himejima, if this is what you so desire, I shall be forced to use brute force."

A fallen angel… And Suou Himejima… And us, trapped in a Mexican standoff such in one of those movies. Kokuto, dear, I know this is beyond what I thought I thought was possible, and my resurrection is indeed important, but I… I don't want you to partake in this madness. We should just part ways and attack another day, or find a better exorcist to deal with me and make me find another vessel for this situation…

What are you saying, Lady Tamamo? Like I said, I'm a man, and like a man should, I shall stand my place in here and deal with their bullcrap like I said I would. Fallen angel or not, head of a clan or not, I don't see what those mean, and I don't care. Until the last card is dealt, the game is not over. Besides, with a name like that, I doubt this Baraqiel man will make any different here. So it's just us and Lord Himejima. Although fighting for real without an eye might be a little too difficult. Ouch, the moment I thought that, I felt a sharp pain coming from my right socket, making me groan and blink once, twice. When all turned back to normal and I could finally see again, I notice something: I have my sense of depth back! I touch my right socket, and I could feel a new eye there.

"What the…?" I blink once, twice again, and yeah, another yeah just sprouted from the previously empty socket. This might help, Kokuto dear, I used some of my powers to grow a brand new eye for you, and with my sage arts, I can make you see into the future for a few seconds with it. Too bad I can't use my own sage arts with your body, though. Sage Arts? I wonder what's that, but don't matter. I grew a new eye now, and according to her, I can see the future with it. Awesome! Still, you can still turn around and leave them alone and live, Kokuto dear.

What are you talking about, Lady Tamamo? Have you forgot? I am Kokuto Kurokami, the man who always has luck by his side! And with this new eye, I can only see one future with it: my own victory! This new eye, this new clayvorant power… I shall call it Azathoth!

"Tamamo...!" Screamed Lord Himejima as he charges at us.

"Halt this madness!" Affirmed Baraqiel, creating lightning from his palms aiming at both of us.

"Go forth, Tama! Azathoth! Luvah!" I summoned my own powers, as well all charged at each other.

The wheel of Fate is turning! Heaven or hell? LET'S ROCK!


	20. Demon Lord of the Black Realm

**hah! Finally was able to put this chapter up to date! Not an easy task after what happened to my computer, after quotations and the slash buttons were broken and all, the worst thing that could happen to someone who writes stories with a bit of dialogue! Oh the pain and misery, oh woe me or something.**

 **But here it is, the conclusion of this arc and maybe a new fresh start for our protagonist. Glad to see what happened last chapter, thats good. Now, up to the chapter and new supernatural shenanigans! Next arc, I hope you are ready for Kokuto to meet some new friends... and Allies, of course!**

 **NOTE: DxD belongs to Ichiei Ishibumi and its respective magazines. All the OCs are mine, tho.**

* * *

 ***BAAAAAAM!***

" _WOOOTAH_!" And a lightning strike was drawn in the sky, fast as only one could be, and descended upon me from the heaven, hitting me right on the head and instantly killing me… That is what was going to happen, but out of the sudden, I picked my chucks and move them around me as fast as I could! The lightning came down to me as Azathoth said it would, but the moment it was going to kill me, one of the electrified chucks was hit with it instead, ricocheting the struck elsewhere and leaving those old geezers awestruck instead. I made some more noises while styling them around before stopping one of the staffs under my arm and making a pose. "How's that for a filthy hybrid? I saw Way of the Dragon so much my mother's cassette tape wore out. If you want to fight me, be ready to confront the Master of Martial Arts himself as well!"

"Just like your father: Too big for your own fucking shoes!" And I couldn't even finish my little homage to the Master himself, a lightning bolt came down onto me with fiery anger and cut my head in a swift, smooth move while my body melts away with the hit of his katana… That is what was going to happen, so as fast as I could, I morphed Crimson King to its spear form and blocked his flaming katana with the shaft, much for Lord Himejima's surprise. Even so, damn, if his hit didn't weight like a truck on me! Is he really an old geezer with that strength?! He doesn't stop there, and once recovered from the shock he unleashed a barrage of cuts against me, but thanks to Azathoth, I was able to block all of them! But still, he hits like a truck! Then we lock weapons! "You put too much trust in Tamamo's precognitive abilities, filthy hybrid brat. But guess what, the only future that awaits you the moment you decided to join forces with that wicked fox was and will always be death!"

"To accept death is one of virtues of one's existence. You should be worrying about your longevity instead, Old man of the Temple!" I said back, but even so he's strong enough to push me back while I can barely stand against him! Sparkles fly everywhere from our weapons collide, and the area heats up just with his presence! "C'mon, I just want the Killing Stone so that Lady Tamamo can leave my body alone and then do whatever she wants around. You give me the stone, I stop this whole madness before one of us really gets hurt!"

"Not only you're overestimating your pathetic self, but you makes light of what comes with Tamamo's resurrection. Indeed the seed of thy father, shortsighted and arrogant with its own thoughts!" He claims against me, pushing me deeper away and ready to continue his strikes. I jump back to gain some space and made some turns with my flaming spear, producing a golden fire from the tip then pointing at the old man by in front of me, whose katana was ready to be fully unsheathed. "Trust me, young man. I've killed the likes of you for ages in the past, and no matter who or what you are, I have no issues in doing it again, as well as erase that pesky Baraqiel together with you! You cursed foreign pests, ruining my precious land with your unholy presence and spreading your disgusting seed across its women!"

"Okay, I understand, you're one of those racist old men, now please stop being disgusting." I made a face of disgust while playing with the lance on one finger, making a small whirlwind with it, the connection between me and Lady Shuri making the lance weight like a feather on me. I think this is not the best moment to tell him that I'm one-quarter german, is it? Whatever, it's not like it'll make all that of much a difference for him, so I'll have just to keep fighting. "Fine then, so I won't hold back either, Lord Himejima. Come and face me with such. Release your anger, your frustration, your hatred and your vengeance against me; I shall take it all and make you shove it tenfold!"

"You will regret ever coming here, son of the Watcher!" He prepares to come at me once again, and I turn around to see what premonition Azathoth has stored for me: First, he readies his sword, then in a second he cuts the distance between us and pierces my throat in a swift thrust, decapitating me with that hot strike alone! He'll also stop a few meters away from where he was, which is enough for me since I don't actually want to fight him, I just need the stone, and the moment he trips, I'll go ahead inside the temple and pick it for myself. One second, two seconds, and the premonition fulfills itself as Lord Himejima dashes towards me in a second, eyes on my throat, while I lift Crimson King and prepare myself for the clash again! "DIE…!"

"That is enough!" But the final precognition didn't fulfill itself, as loud as a thunder, those words stopped us on the track as another lightning bolt came from the heavens and separated both of us, the stupidly-named fallen angel putting himself between us and separating us from the eventual clash. I landed on my feet, and so did Lord Himejima, but then Lord Baraqiel turned to him and sent instead a lightning bolt from the tip of his finger, which rolled around the old man like a rope and trapped him in electric bonds. He then turns to me. "Enough with this nonsense, Kokuto Kurokami. Your mayhem across the Himejima Temple has caused immeasurable damage already, and fighting the Head will only further it. Cease your childishness, and perhaps you will be forgiven for your sins. "

"Hey, hey, hey. That's really rude, y'know. Coming without an invitation, bursting into the party all high-and-mighty stealing the show, bringing no babes or drinks to cheer up the place, and now wants to butt in in affairs that are none of your business. I swear, talk about a party-pooper." I click my tongue in order to tick a few nerves of his, but to my surprise he kept the scowl from before without any signs of irritation, only disappointment. I then remove the white rose resting on my hair and morphed it into Luvah, the silver scythe, pointing its head at him. "A fallen angel, eh? So you're just like Azazel, my father. Tell me, are you buddies with him? Friends? Rivals? Lovers? I don't judge, of course, because by the end of this day, it won't even matter much to me, and neither for you, I hope. So let me pass, watcher, let me pass so I can fulfill my duty, otherwise, up to the corpse pile with you!"

"Tch, this brings me back. Your father used to have that same attitude in our younger days. However, unlike you, he did and still has the strength to back it up." He proclaims, eyes squint and serious attitude unshaken. So he wants to play the blaming game on me. Okay, two can play it too.

"Oh yeah? And like you, you both are very terrible fathers. But at least my mother is still aliv-…"

 ***ZAAAAAAP!***

"Missed." I said with a tilted head to a side, dodging by an inch the furious, thunderous lightning crossed the distance between us, coming from the tip of his finger. His scowl now adopts a more murderous intent, teeth grit and trembling indicating his fury and sorrow. I mean, what I knew from back then with Himejima, plus the fact that there is someone like me back in Kuoh, plus his own involvement here and the fact that was apparently a dead Himejima among them, it's not hard to uncover what is going on here. So, he is Himejima's father, fallen angel Baraq Obama-el. Not that makes any difference. "I'm not my father, Lord Baraqiel, but you'll be making a mistake in underestimating me. Above all else, I'm the man who always has luck by his side, so if you're ready to either die or flee, come forth, and face the deathtiny that awaits you."

Oh look, I made a pun.

"…" No words were shared between us after that declaration, but I could feel the murderous intent from him as he launched himself in my direction while forming two light swords from his hands and clashing them with Luvah's pole, his strength being even harder than before! I could feel my arms almost snapping out of place, but I stood my ground, and after pulling myself away from him, it took the combined forces of both Azathoth and Luvah for me to counter his ever strike! He's fast, he's strong, he has history with wars and fights, I can already tell! Not even being able to see into the future can save me from the storm of slashes and thrusts from his light weapons!

 ***STAB!***

"Ugh…!" And it happened, I'm not surprised that it did: from all those slashes and attacks, one particular was able to bypass my defenses and premonitions and stab me right in the chest! The feeling of the sharp, cutting light passing through my organs like a hot knife on warm butter was probably the worst I could ever feel so far. Not only that, Lord Baraqiel twisted the handle of it so it could pierce me even further as electric shocks would harden my whole body, making go numb. I vomit some blood with the blow that would've easily kill me otherwise, and looking up, I could see Lord Baraqiel's face, with a subdue, but still present, darkness in his eyes. "This hurts… Way more… Than it looks…"

"Don't speak, child, only accept your defeat, itll be quicker like this." He says in a calm, composed, yet poisonous voice, as he twists his sword even more into my body while it goes numb with pain. This really hurts more, much more, than it looks and describes! The jolts of electricity plus the adding pain of the stab is making me lose consciousness, and my premonitions can only see myself still stabbed by the light sword. This is bad, really bad! He says he doesn't want to kill me, but sure seem so! Damn it, at least one future! Azathoth, give me at least one future where I am not killed by this lame-named fallen angel! "You will be losing consciousness soon, Kokuto Kurokami. Bu fear not, I shall take you to your father without further repercussions. Although speaking ill of my late beau with have its consequences in the future. Any lasts words for me, before we close this encounter?"

"…"

"…?"

"Just… Two… _Boo-yah, motherfucker_." I said, morphing Luvah back from the scythe back to its rose form and throwing it between my fingers in his direction, the sharp end of the rose pointing right on one of his eyes! … Only for him to simply tilt his head to a side and nonchalantly dodge my attack, looking at me yet again with certain disappointment and even grief, making me feel a bit bad.

"Seriously? Resorting to swears and curses in your situation? I thought you seem a bit more dignified than th-…"

" _BOO-YAH, MOTHERFUCKER_!" And just like the premonition told me, someone came down with a roundhouse kick and hit Baraqiel right in the face, pushing him so hard that I swear I could see his face contort is slow motion as the kick would slow but painfully deform the skin on his skull until he was jet to a random direction and broke down a nearby lower shrine, letting go of me and his sword, making me fall onto the ground on my butt. I look up yet again and here he was: Suou Himejima, strong and still as long a man like him would, the upper part of his Shinto priest vest coming off and showing several tattoos printed on the skin of his muscles in the shape of a flaming bird and several samurais. After landing his two feet on the ground, he made a pump-up pose and let out a heaven-shaking scream. "HELL YEAH! WHOS THE MAN?! ME, I AM THE MAN! FUCK YOU, GRIGORI! FUCK YOU, HYBRIDS! FUCK YOU, FALLEN SONS OF GOD AND FUCK YOU JEHOVAH! SHINTO ALL THE WAY IN THIS BITCH, _MOTHERFUCKEEEEEEEEEERS_ …!"

"…" I couldn't actually speak words for that, someone seems a little bit too much nationalist even for some standards. Worse of all, he seems a lot more livelier than before, and this can only mean more trouble for me in this situation. I crawl away from him, but in the same moment his purple eyes pierce through me, almost making me freeze in place.

"And now… TO GET RID OF THE FUCKING HYBRID!" He screams and punches the floor where I was as I dodge his attack in time, but it was no use: the burst of power was so much it created a shockwave that made me roll on my back! I roll and roll until I could tell up from down, and then stood my on my own two legs to face Lord Himejima, who was smiling like a maniac on steroids and too much protein. "Hurry up and die!"

"In your dreams, old man." I declare, putting myself in a battle stance yet again as he prepared a punch against me, a punch that would've burst my entire left body if it wasn't for Azathoth as I dodged his punch, used my right hand to pick the handle of sword shoved into me and take it away from my chest as he tries once again to punch my entire torso away. Hes become quite strong physically, but because of that he became slower. I think I can deal with him right now. I swing my sword against him, and to my surprise he crosses both his hands in an X in front of his body, engulfs them on fire and blocks the blade made out of light like it was nothing! "What…?!"

"You overestimate your precious light weapons, mongrel! This is the power of the mighty Kagutsuchi, the creator of the Great fields of Yamato, whose blood and flesh constructed this very land!" He claims, pushing my sword away and preparing another punch against me! Instead of running away, I aimed the light sword directly at his punch, and like a clash of blades, both my weapon and his fire punch collided and pushed themselves away! So his fists are as strong and resistant as a light weapon, good to know. Another punch, this time by the other side, and then another blade on that too! *CLINK!* *CLINK!* *CLINK!*, he's slower, but he's not slowing down. C'mon Azathoth, show me a future where he falls! "Fall and die, son of the Watcher! Let the worms feast on your flesh and your spirit to fall by the hands of the Himejima!"

"Could you please shut up?! I'm already having a headache with all of that!" I scream back, still holding the sword against his mighty flaming fists as he was denting and breaking the light in it like it was just glass! We crossed arms, and his fist bypassed my defenses and reached for my body! A smile grew on his face, sure of victory!

"EAT THIS! MAY THE GOD OF EARTH ENGULF YOU IN FLAMES AND BURN YOUR VERY S-BOOWAH~!" But I tricked him instead! Aiming at my body, I turned in such a way that instead he would punch the gaping hole in my chest and bury his own hand there, losing a step and entering my own reach! With his mind awry and his composure broken, I went ahead and shoved the light sword right deep onto his chest, piercing his body until the other side of the blade was visible from his back! He was so stunned he couldn't move, so I jumped away and got rid of his arm deep shove into myself! The moment, intense, as we both kneeled in front of each other, painting in pain for our respective wounds. "You… Miserable… Little fucker…"

"Don't use strong words, old man… They make you look weak…" I cough some more blood now that the wound in my chest still gushes more, and as for Himejima, he reaches for the handle of the sword in his chest and, with a vicious grip, smashes it from existence, now turning it into particles of light until nothing remains, now with a gaping hole on his chest as well. Heheh, I'm doing pretty great for a mongrel, ain't I? "Just give me the stone already, old man. Losing and getting the stone stolen by me, or giving up and handing me the stone, no matter the path you choose, shame and hopelessness awaits in your wakening from this battle. So don't bother at acting like a Big Shot, just give me the damn stone…"

"To be defeated, or withdraw… I got a better idea: I rather fuck your shit up, you little…!" His eyed wide, and Azathoth informs me about the future as we both jump backwards and stood up from out places! I summon Crimson King yet again in the chucks form and Himejima snaps his fingers to summon a magical rune above his head and protect him from the lightning shower that fell onto us! They are fast, they are merciless, but I was able to deflect some of them with the chucks own electric powers! In the end, both of us stood still, tired and breathless, but pretty much unscratched by lightning, and then we turned to a certain direction, where Baraqiel, bruised and with several bloody splinters stabbing his body, not looking very pleased. "And who are you to burst our bubble, Banana-head?! Go mind your own business and mourn over your dead wife and that little whorish piece of guano you call a daughter!"

"Kurokami, Lord Himejima, Im trying to end this conflict with the best of my interest, but you're making such matters much more difficult than it should. If you don't want to cooperate, I shall be forced to use lethal force." He claims, and now loud sparkles of lightning start to dance around him, one and each sounding like a true thunder, and almost bursting my eardrums. So he is not all serious yet, he hits like a truck and showered freaking lightning on a clear night like it was nothing, and yet this is not his full strength just yet. I smile in defiance, but inside Im trembling more than an out-of-water fish. He's way stronger than he seems, and if I don't end this quickly, this will spiral out of control, and all shall fall onto me. This sucks~, but I got no choice.

"Your words don't scare me, fallen angel! I eat one of your kin for breakfast and wipe my ass with its wings! Nothing you or your faggot-ass sparkly fingers can do to intimidate me!" Lord Himejima flips Lord Baraqiel off with a flaming finger, and the latter's scowl just grows worse. I'm getting kinda pumped myself, so I summon both Luvah and Crimson King back and also flipped the bird on the fallen angel.

"Yeah, flock off, featherface. This is a battle between men, not some mourning session. So if you don't mind, get away from here before we pluck your wings off like a Thanksgiving Turkey." I said defiantly, which should be enough to put him off-balance and plan a strategy as he goes around like a berserker.

Big mistake. Not one blink away and I could feel my entire face numbing to the pain of having my face smashed against a hard-as-rock fist and the punch being strong to launch me backwards into the hard concrete of the pathway leading to the main temple, my whole body tracing a path of destruction and blood on it as I could see Lord Baraqiel almost oozing energy from his being where I originally was. Finally, when I could finally tell left from right, I stood my nigh-broken body from the floor and tried but failed to engage, as another path of destruction right next to mine a figure appeared: Lord Himejima, apparently suffering the same damage as I did, standing up from the curtain of dust and emanating his own heat, his own hot aura that was practically melting the floor he was standing. Both lords looking at each other, ready to strike and deal the blows necessary to end this war… And Im here too, unfortunately.

"You will pay for this, fallen angel! You will PAY!" His screams and his finger were a dead ringer of something bad that was going to happen. Suddenly, the heat aura that he was emanating started to take shape. The fiery crimson energy oozing from his being morphed first a head and a body, and then a massive torso and then an armor around it shaped like a samurai. In the end, handling a sword, Lord Himejima had behind him the ghostly form of a massive blazing samurai. "BEHOLD! KAGUTSUCHI, THE MAKER OF LANDS, CREATOR OF THIS BLESSED FIELDS OF YAMATO! FEAR, FEAR AND BE SUBJUGATED BY HIS FIERY MIGHT!"

"So you opted for engagement, Lord Himejima. It is a pity, for I thought I could find some solace and redemption between us during these dire times. An unfortunate, indeed. However, don't think I will hold back because of our link." Said the Lightning of God, opening his several wings and imbuing them with his own lightning, making the sparkles and shine bright like the Sun itself, also covering himself with some kind of electric armor, plus several lances and swords made out of light. In the end, he became a being as bright as Lord Himejima and his Kagutsuchi. "And now, both of you, face the true might of the one and only lightning of God, the Watcher who controls the bright and swift force of nature!"

"…"

…

Okay, I'm done here.

"Okay, I give up."

"Huh…?"

"Huh…?"

"Yeah, I give up. No more reason for fighting but stupid and even suicidal pride. And I got enough of that for today." I declare, much for the surprise of both Lords between me, so much they stopped to emanate killing intent the moment I said those words. Yeah, I might have luck always by my side, but today, I know I'll lose no matter how much backup I have on me. On one side, the head of a clan, and the other, a being that has been living way more than I will ever will, both of them harnessing divine power which surpasses my own tenfold. I know when I'm defeated, and no better time to admit that than now. So I lift both my hands in a surrender pose while still holding Luvah on one hand and Crimson King on another. "I give up, no tricks or backup. I know when I can't win, and between you two, I have nothing to lose or win in this stupid quest for power. So I withdraw from this bloodshed and as a sign of my complete and honest defeat, I shall now throw all of my weapons… Into your fugly faces."

"What?!"

"Have at it, yer old farts!" I said as Luvah morphed back into a rose and Crimson King back into a Lance and then I threw both of them in their direction!

 ***VOOSH! VOOSH!***

…

…

"What?" But nothing happened between them, not even a scratch. They looked at themselves, then to each other, and then back to me. "Are you… Making fun of us, Kurokami?"

"Not really." I said, and then I snapped my fingers. "Showtime."

 ***SNAP!***

 ***BOOOOOOM!***

"…!" And the surprise was too much for them, they turned around to see the source of that explosion that filled the night sky with pure light hotter and brighter than the Sun: out of the sudden, the whole main Himejima temple burst into flames, swallowing the entire place in crimson and golden flames! Screams and explosions were heard from inside as the entire place burnt to the ground in a show of lights and heat! Lord Himejima was the first to give in, kneeling on the ground with tears of blood running down his eyes. "NOOOOOOO! THE TEMPLE! THE SYMBOL OF THE MIGHT OF THE HIMEJIMA STATE, RUINED! CURSED BE! CURSED BE!"

"Kurokami, you…!" Lord Baraqiel turned to me with fire on his eyes, but he was too late to act as anything else: from the ground below his feet, silver thorny vines sprouted and like serpents they coiled around both him and Lord Himejima, their painful, large and vicious embrace not allowing them to move even an inch. The distraction is done, the imprisoning is done, time to get myself some magic rock! Without a single second to lose, I dashed past both elemental lords into the burning Himejima state in order to reach the killing stone hidden somewhere there! I have to be fast, I must not underestimate their own powers for that! "KUROKAMI…!"

"You utter fools! You fell for the oldest trick in the book!" I said in a mocking tone, but actually I'm just coping with the fact that I'm burning down a sacred temple, and no amount of prayers will save my soul from a fate worse than death if I don't die tonight. I close my left eye so I could only see with the right one, pushing the limits of it with Tamamos blessing. "Cmon, Azathoth! Show the luck that the future holds for me! Find the Killing Stone, and break me free from this curse!"

"KUROKAMEEEEEEEEEEEEH…!" I hear screams behind my back, and instead of the location of the stone, I see balls of fire and lightning being hauled at me! Damn it, I have to use Azathoth more than ever now, because I can actually feel their killing intents right behind my back! Curses and screams, all indicating intense bloodlust., but I will not turn back now! Just focus on the stone! Just find the stone and the hell out of this warzone! "DAMNED BE YOU, KUROKAMI! YOUR BONES SHALL ROT IN THE HEART OF NARAKA AND YOUR SOUL, TO BE DEVOURED OVER AND OVER BY THE GUARDIANS OF HELL!"

"Come on, come on… Found it!" I blink one more time as Azathoth previews where and when the Killing stone is! I gear myself up and throw myself into the burning temple as Tama appears right on my shoulder! However, the adrenaline wasn't enough for me to get away unscratched: the moment I threw myself into the flames, one lightning bolt hit me right in the spine and an explosion caused by a fireball vaporized my entire leg! But fortunately that boost was enough for me get inside even further and, in a shot of luck, find the cursed stone right on the floor! I reached for my hand there, and clashing on the wooden burning floor, was able to catch that damned piece of rock as I rolled on the ground! "Gotcha!"

I said such, but what now? The temple is burning to the ground and I'm missing a leg, not that it matters since I can no longer feel my lower parts, and the pain in my chest and lungs due to my injuries and fire are making me go numb. This was an desperate struggle, this was an stupid struggle. My vision is becoming blurry, my senses are starting to fade, and even though I can still sense the cold killing stone in my possession, I no longer can sense the heat around me. Worst of all, those two broke free from their vegetal shackles and are heading towards me. Whatever they reach me to give their better judgement or I succumb to the flames and fire around, I'm a lost cause, I have been thrown into a corner now, and only because of this stupid… Rock. I guess… This is the end.

But of course, I'm not going down alone, nor I'll just wait for it to come! I summon Crimson King yet again in its spear form, and aimed its head towards where my heart should be. This is how someone like me should end things: with a bang!

" _To die, to sleep, to sleep, perchance to dream… Ay, theres the rub_ …" I cite with myself, despite my numbing senses, I can feel the fiery hot tip of the spear pointing right on where my heart should be, and I swallow air for the final act. I hear gasps of surprise, and out of the sudden…! " _For in this sleep… Of death… What dreams… MAY…!"_

 ***STAB!***

"… _COME_!" … heat! Fire! My body filling with explosive energy, so much that I might just pop like a bomb! And then…!

 ***BOOOOOOOOOOOOOM…!***

…

…

" ***GASP! GASP!*** L-L- **Lucky~** **!** I did it! Holy mother of God, I did it!" I screamed to the heavens as I pushed that massive piece of burnt wood away from above me, the same piece of wood that crushed me while I was about to explode, and then, darkness! When I could finally move, I removed such on me and gasped for some fresh air, not having a gaping hole in my chest anymore and being able to move my legs, the two of them, yet again. Thank Tama for Schrodinger, but this was a hell of a gambit. "I'm not… Doing this… Ever again…"

"Aww~, don't say that. Witnessing death so up-close and the death of the Himejima state sure was a hell of a scene." That sweet, soft and mellow voice reaches my ear once again, a voice that I know oh so very much. In the middle of the dark forest where I position myself in at night, I search and search for that source, only to lay my eyes on the figure looking at the threatening gleam of golden light that shines as much as the Sun at the horizon, which even the heat reaches here. A tall, dark-haired young-looking woman wearing a winter school uniform, looking from the cliff thr destruction back in the city. "You madman of a lad, using your own body as a catalyst for an explosion and hoping that something or someone would activate Schrodinger on the nick of time. Such a wave of luck, and burning down a temple just like Nobunaga… Still, that worked by the end of the day. The wood of an old Shinto Temple… Sure burns nicely."

"Yeah, don't expect me to gamble like that ever again… Lady Tamamo. I am not the demon king of the Sixth Realm." I sigh, sitting next to her by the cliff and watching the massive fireball by the horizon, only noticing under closer inspection is the remains of the old Himejima temple still burning bright. I look back, noticing that piece of wood is the one I used Schrodinger on is exactly a part of that temple's construction that flew all over here, a completely deserted part of the forest. I look at the fox spirit right next to me, and despite her hollow and cold aura, I can sense that she is, indeed, here with me. I feel a presence from her, and not some ghostly entity in my mind. She turns back to me, and gives me a smart smile. "So, mission accomplished, it seems. You are really here, right? I am not hallucinating or something."

"Not at all, darling, dear Kokuto. Thanks to you and the killing stone, I finally have a vessel perfect for yours truly. I can maintain this glorious form for all of my heart's content, and freely move in the human world. It is quite satisfying, I must say." She stands up and starts to do some poses with her new body, jumping a few times to test the gravity on her feet, as well as morphing her black shadow of a winter uniform into other more scandalous clothes such as a bikini, a nurse outfit and even a cheerleader one, no reaction from me of course.

"That's a good thing to hear, indeed." I sigh to myself, looking at the fire at a distance. "Hey, Lady Tamamo, about Lord Himejima and Lord Baraqiel…"

"Don't you worry about them, dear. That old fart Suou and fallen angels are not as fragile as you think. The scare might've been too much, but in a week or so they'll be alright and ready to kick some butts again. Fortunately, enough time for me to skedaddle away and search for the other Killing Stones with the other families." She laughs to herself, hiding her devious smile away with a hand, despite the malicious eyes oozing nothing but contempt and hatred towards those names. I'm just glad that I didn't kill anyone. "Although breaking some bones from that old fart and that fallen angel put me in the good moods. I can't wait to do the same with those other family heads. Huhuhuh…"

"Yeah, that's quite visible, lady Tamamo." I sigh to myself. Man, what a day. I don't remember the last time I got so much adrenaline rushing through my body, even after discovering my relation with this Azazel guy.I guess the wheel of fate doesn't stop ever, even with someone like me, with luck by his side. Even so, luck is indeed by my side. Always. Lady Tamamo stopped spinning in place and groping her own body and turned her attentions to me.

"And so it is, the queen of the haunts and fox demon Tamamo-no-Mae is back in the game, ready to terrorize a new generations of humans and youkai alike and claim her throne as the supreme lord of the Evil Spirits, and all thanks to you, Kokuto Kurokami. Ain't that romantic in its own? Yet, you did everything from the kindness of your heart, like a good lackey." She comes closer and makes me look directly at her eyes with a finger on my chin. I try to turn away, but she forces me to look at her. "Despite all of my complains and demands, I am truly grateful for your cooperation and care for my wellbeing. Should I say, I can even say I develop some fondness for you. Strange, isn't it?"

"You're welcome, I guess." I shrug and turned back to the vision before me. For the record, I didn't do it for the 'kindness of my heart' or some other crap like that. It's just I hit rock bottom the moment that fallen angel with the lame name appeared out of nowhere, I felt like I should play with way a little more and see what would happen. Look at me, playing with fate that I used to avoid. I blink my eye a few times, both of them, and notice that both are back on their sockets. I wonder if I can still use Azathoth like before. I turn back to Lady Tamamo while standing up. "So, we better part ways before some exorcists appear and end up exorcising both of us or worse. It was a nice ride with you, Lady Tamamo, but I have school tomorrow, so until next time I guess. You don't need to possess anyone anymore, anyway…"

"Hey, Kokuto. Catch!" And out of the sudden she throws something at me, which I instinctively catch with my hands. It's both cold and heavy, so I can only assume is something like a weapon. I open my eyes to take a closer look, and I notice it is indeed a weird-looking short sword, a seven-branched sword to be more precise. I look at it, then back at Lady Tamamo, and in response she smiles. "That is my payment for your dear services. This is an exorcist sword that might help you a lot now that both the Five Families and some fallen angels might be looking for you. Don't worry, this is not like that lame Excalibur or Durandal, this one is special! After all, it has a piece of my soul inside as well, so it'll be a breeze for you to get a handle of it. Plus, I know how showy you like to be."

"Huh, thank you very much." I said with a nod, taking a quick glance at the said sword. A bronze-coloured seven-branched sword made out of some metal, but unlike a normal sword it has no edge or cut, and it looks more like a deformed hunk of bronze than a real weapon. At least it looks pretty, so it will indeed look cool in my collection. I think I'll call it **Aslan**. I hope I don't get to show off this one for too long. Instantly, the so-called sword morphed to a small necklace that put itself around my neck. "Thanks, Lady Tamamo. I shall treasure it forever."

"Of course you will. It is from me, of course." And she smiles, stretching herself a bit as her eyes aims at the fireball at the distance. "We better get going, I can see some fallen angels and shikigamis going for that direction, and it won't take long for them to look for all the remains of that old temple."

"Yeah, you're right." I said, taking my road away from the forest in a way that it won't attract too much attention. Lady Tamamo, on the other hand, turns herself to another direction and jumps away, taking the form of a massive black fox and hiding herself in the shadows. However, before she could finally disappear into the darkness, her sweet voice reaches me yet again.

"But don't worry, Kokuto dear. Something tells me that… We'll be seeing each other someday. It is only natural, after all." And the she disappears into the darkness of the night. "And don't worry, you can still use my eye as a courtesy and an apology. But since you lack senjutsu, I doubt it'll be that useful… Well, regardless, God Speed, son of the Watcher. Or should I say... Demon Lord of the Black Realm?"

"…"

"Huhuhuh..." And then, silence.

...

...

"Yeah…" I simply murmur, despite the cold sweat and the freeze on my spine. To meet her again, more powerful and insane, doesn't seem like a good idea, and I doubt I would survive another night like that…

But yet again, I am Kokuto Kurokami, the man who has luck always by his side, and now, under a new title. Encounter or not, followed by fallen angels and some families whatnot, I shall always stand my place, no matter what. And now with new weapons in my arsenal, I might be even unstoppable! But let's not play with fate again, okay? Today… Was a stressful day. I take my way for out of the forest back to the road leading towards the train so I can take my ride back home if I remember the name of the stations correctly. But before I do it, I turn around to see the fireball still going strong in the horizon, and no matter the efforts, it wouldn't just go away. The temple I burnt down to the ground, now being consumed by flames…

…

Huh, Lady Tamamo was right.

Temple wood indeed burns nicely.


	21. The comedy of K

**Yep. I helped myself and decided to write and post this chapter in order to compensate the delay from the last. It might be on the short side of things, but this is the part on which the story starts to pick up! I feel excited to start this new arc, and the posibilities too! It might not please everybody, but I will still do my best... Despite the broken keyboard. So anyway, a nice read, R &R as always and please have a nice evening!**

 **Disclaimer: DxD belongs to Ichiei Ishibumi and its respective magazines. OCs and events are mine, tho.**

* * *

 _'_ _Surprise, surprise! Kurokami is asleep again...'_

 _'Is everything he ever did for the past year, sleeping during lectures, all alone. No matter how many time passes, it is still creepy...'_

 _'It's a shame, too. He certainly is cute.'_

 _'Ew~, don't say that. He might hear you and want to talk to you...'_

 _'Creepy~...'_

""

'

Ah, shut up~. It's not like I don't want to have friends, but this fame for being Yuki's boyfriend plus my little entourage as Lady Tamamo's toy dragged my reputation to the mud for the whole year. Besides, if you guys have time to talk like that behind my back, then come here and talk to me, damnit.

It has been almost a year and a half since I transferred here in Kuoh Academy, and yet I have no friends to speak to, nor any professors seems to like me all that much, and my popularity as the 'new guy' already vanished, and I end up just as the freaky boy who sleeps during classes and almost went postal. Not that I care much for that, but being talk about in whispers piss me off a bit, specially by girls. I should already have gotten used to it, but still… Ugh...

But no matter, no matter. The lesser they know about me, the better. I already have my fair share of problems to deal with, things they wouldn't even consider in their normal lives. I just need to play this persona for one more year, and then I'll deal with them without the system holding me back. But come to think of it, this school, this particular school, I notice that particular scent I have feeling ever since I enrolled here have been getting stronger and stronger. Something like... Scorch, or maybe something burning. I wonder why, though…

But whatever, it's not my problem, I haven't been for over a year, so it won't be my problem now. I have been hanging low since that accident back in the Himejima temple, so this is what I'm doing for the past year. I'm kinda tired anyway, so I won't bother as for now. Just gonna hang low, take a nap, look at the passing time and hear the mean whispers coming from my classmates. This is my life now, and I couldn't ask for anything differen-...

 ***BAM!***

"Gh...!"

"Good afternoon, Kokkun." And I spoke too soon. When I was about to take my daily nap on the lap of my seat, there she comes again, storming inside my classroom and pulling a chair for herself to sit in front of me, the sound of her lunchbox hitting right next to me. Is it already lunchtime already? Without even taking my cheek off the chair, I toss my stare upwards, and there she is: Long and smooth black hair, equally dark eyes and a ghastly pale skin that it looks like it shines. It looks like an angel, but it is just my 'girlfriend' Shirayuki Shirogane, who couldn't be further from an angel but a devil itself, figuratively just to be sure. Just my luck. She sits in front of me, unwrapping her lunchbox. "I see that you have been sleeping during classes yet again. How shameful, to think my boyfriend would behave so rebelliously, it's almost laughable, I must say. But of course, I wouldn't laugh at you."

"Uhh~... Leave me alone, Yuki. Can't I just be your boyfriend when there are people around you?" You heard me right, despite all the times we've been together as for now, even celebrating Christmas and new year's eve together at my house, we're still in fact NOT in a relationship.

"What are you talking about, Kokkun? I am your girlfriend; therefore, you are my boyfriend, 24/7. To think you would say such a cruel thing hurts me beyond humanly possible." She says this as she pulls her straightest face as ever, and just saying that, I could feel all the male gazes upon me grow colder. She says she's hurt, yet she didn't even flinch or took her eyes away from her dish. All that time, and she didn't learn to be convincingly hurt at all. She cleans her mouth a little with a napkin, and sighs. "Fortunately, I'm used to your brutal treatment on me as by now. Be grateful for such, Kokkun."

"Yeah, yeah; whatever." I said with another bite on my fried egg, feeling something like a sign being burned on my back from the sheer stares I'm receiving right now. What a pain, I should really just drop the façade already and throw her into the dogs so that she leaves me alone… But alas, I can't because… Again, she's really pretty, and has nice tits. Pretending or not, I'm not unhappy to have her as a not!girlfriend, and Ive already made some pretty good memories with her, aside from all of the threats and bullying I've been receiving right now on the daily basis. She passes me a piece of sushi, and I eat it. Huh, isn't that Foie Gras? Tch, the same rich, spoiled girl. I munched on that lovely delicious piece of avian suffering and pain, feeling the flavor of tears and blood until I swallow it. Nice, good indeed. I pass her a small piece of grilled fish so we just can call it even now. "Here's one for you too."

"Appreciated." She picks said piece and munch on it. She takes a bite, and then her face turns purple and her expression, sour; she coughs, she turns the other side, and picks a napkin and puts her mouth on it, making sounds. Still no good for Ms. Perfection, is it? "It was… Good."

"Please don't lie to me." I say. She turns her stare to me with a dark aura.

"It was… Pleasant."

"Thank you." At least she knows now how to at least be subtle.

And just how it started, the conversation ended abruptly, and we continue to eat our lunch in peace, no other word muttered by the other party at all. All that time and she's not my real girlfriend yet, and everything about her is rotten to the core still. I still don't like her very much, and vice-versa, but she treats me with those expensive goods and trips to other parts of Japan, and out compatibility has been increasing over time, so I can't say that our little fake relationship hasn't gone nowhere for now. I finish my lunchbox at the same time she finishes hers, and so, nothing else, we're just facing each other sharing a single desk, no words spoken while everybody eyes us with certain envy and wrath, mostly at me, courtesy of the boys. I couldn't care less about it, but at least I can definitely say that I stand a step above those good-for-nothing virgin classmates(Even though I'm a virgin myself. Surprisingly enough, Yuki doesn't want to cross that line just yet).

End of classes, end of my turn as a normal student. Since I already finished my duties as the new guy and Yuki doesn't feel like going on a date again, I guess I'll just storm back in that cute little bakery to buy some sweets for her and then straight back home. I wonder if this month's allowance will be enough for both that and to buy this week's Jump. Mom is busy on her business trip at Monaco yet again, she even forgot to transfer my allowance today, but no matter, I still have enough for that, those, and maybe some extras for cake and Jump. I passed around the perverted duo of idiots still hung up on the school's flag, Hyoudou being absent from their shenanigans for a while now, completely ignoring their pleas for help and curses against me, and headed to the bakery shop. Nothing much here, besides the cakes, me and the cutie attendant who's around my age. I buy the cheapest chocolate strawberry shortcake they have around and, after trying to stare too much into the attendant's bosom and being shooed out of the store by her father, I guess that's enough for today's money. Cake on one hand, and my broken school material by the other, fortunately all of that training paid off, so I can carry those without much problem.

"Even so, it'd be nice to have someone helping me for all of that…" I lament to myself. I say all of those pompous things, yet carrying all of that are a pain. Honestly, at least this is all I have to do today, and all of my problems would be over now.

I was wrong. I was dead wrong on that, and to be honest, I am glad I was, because ever since that incident at the Himejima state, I am sure I just got blacklisted in the supernatural world as the new Demon Lord of the Sixth Heaven since no other supernatural creature dared to confront me ever since. I mean, until now…

The moment I opened the door to get inside my own house and eat dinner and then bury my face on the books so that I could get into the university part of my school life in Kuoh academy, I was greeted not by my cat Sacred Gear or my cheerful dear mother who was supposed to be on Monaco on business, but by a new figure sitting on my couch and doing a pose that I can only describe as someone who has been waiting me for quite a while. I turn on the light to discover said figure of silver-white hair, purple eyes, fair skin and wearing a purple trenchcoat over a black vest, and we look stares, his showing a mix of fascination and boredom, while I share the same feeling…

"Good evening, Kokuto Kurokami. Do you know who I am?" He asks in a polite yet firm tone of voice, and for that, I can only sigh in defeat. I have the feeling that I was supposed to know who this fella is, yet I don't, not at all. He can be so many things and I could still be entirely wrong, so I shouldn't bother much unless it's for politeness. I take my way to the living room where he sits, dropping my stuff on the nearby table and closing the door behind me.

"With all due respect, my dear guest, I do not. You are not the first person who noses into my life, enters my house without an invitation and drops some kind of bomb in any or both of them. Like I said for the first person who did that, I should call the cops on you because what you did, regardless of what supernatural faction you belongs to, is still house-invading. But like happened last time, it's not like you care for puny human rules, right? So I won't bother this time either." I declare much for his subtle surprise, a fascinated brow arched no less. Once I sat down on the opposing seat to him, I reach for the liquid dispenser on the table, served some tea and passed the porcelain cup to him, still steaming. "Tea?"

"Appreciated." He reciprocates my little show of hospitality by picking said cup and taking a quick sip from it, steam oozing now from his mouth as he sighs to cool off his insides. Yep, nothing beats a good tea after a day of work, that's a habit I've picked after the events of last year. He puts the cup down as I snatch one for myself, and turns his attention back to me. "But now I think I should present myself to you, Kokuto Kurokami. My name is Shemhazai, and I am the Governor General of the Fallen Angels and their organization, the Grigori."

"Ah…" I snap one from my mouth which mixes both surprise and boredom, if that makes any sense. I knew from the get-go that he wasn't a human, but to find myself in that same situation again with one of their leaders to top it off is… Disconcerting, to say the least. I wonder why someone as important as apparently him would even bother. "Interesting, very interesting. Fallen angel, that's new. So you're 100% of what I am in 50%, that's nice."

"I knew your father too."

"Everybody does, Lord Shemhazai. Everybody does because every time I find one of you supernatural beings, they're always like: _'Son of the Watche_ r' this, _'Azazel's spawn'_ that. Of course you get used to it, but it's a bit weird at the start." I said while crossing my legs on the sofa and taking another sip from my tea. He seems a bit intrigued and upset about my lack of interest in the whole conversation, and while I didn't invite him in the first place, it is very rude for me as a guest to leave him hanging and with a bad taste in his mouth. I put my own cup down and stared back at him. "Look, Lord Shemhazai, I know that you probably don't want to be here, and to talk to me and make a new friend is not in one of your intentions for invading my house, so I would deeply appreciate if you could just state your business so I can decline and you can leave my residence without much troubl-…"

"Kokuto Kurokami, I am here to tell you that your father is **dead**."

…

… Oh.

Wait, what?

"Excuse… Me…?" I slurred a bit after that load of information just hits me like a truck. Wait, what? Azazel, the fallen angel everybody talks about all the time and who is in fact my father is… Dead? Whoa, that's a bit too much to take in in one go. I mean, I didn't know him all that much, but that's shocking nonetheless. Ah, why is my vision becoming blurry out of the sudden? There must be something in my eyes or something. Lord Shemhazai notices my unquietness, and takes a deep breath.

"Well, not _dead_ exactly, but his current situation prevents him fromcontacting us directly, and regarding what he is doing right now, it might take more than eternity before he can come back." I feel like something colossal was taken away from my shoulders the moment Lord Shemhazai declared that Azazel is not quite dead, but… Sealed? On another dimension? Doesn't matter, such statement made me take a small sigh of relief. I would say a good few ones on his face so that he wouldn't be saying such harsh things before blabbering the whole truth just after, but from here I can see that he's as much shocked as I am, and hes the one giving me such news. They mustve been close or something. After all, they are fallen angel leaders…

"Okay… But still, what brings you here, Lord Shemhazai? If you want to give me condolences, well, I didn't know him at all, but I deeply appreciate your considerations. I would also really like if you've brought the news that I was in his testament or something plus his inheritance. Just kidding…" I wave off as a joke to his small scowl for my halfhearted but sincere thanks for his consideration. Still, if the fact that the supernatural has ever since bugger off my personal life for this whole time, something quite big is about to happen if he has interest in me now. But since I don't know best, better feign ignorance as for now. "Well then, if you don't have anything else to say, I deeply appreciate your visit and I offer my condolences as well, Lord Shemhazai. If you personally came here to talk about my father, I have all the reasons to believe you two were quite close and stuff. Now, I have school tomorrow, but if you want you can wait a few seconds so that I can go to the flower store not very far from here and buy some flowers for you to take to his grave or whatever in my place or something. In the meantime, make yourself at home, drink some tea or whatever. Just don't touch my PS4, I had to almost kill someone to get that…"

"Kokuto Kurokami, as you must have guessed, I'm not paying you a visit for the sole purpose of talking about a figure that I know has little to no meaning to you." He says standing up on his seat before I could do the same. With his eyes aimed directly at me, so intensely I thought we were going full yaoi-scenario now, he sighs, lowers his head and turns his stare back at me. "We both know very well that you don't have the slightest interest in the supernatural affairs of our world. Not only you rejected our invitation through our mediator Tobio Ikuse, we also took notice of your… Problematic interludes regarding other factions, including jeopardizing the Himejima state and the other four of the five great families, letting go of a supernatural criminal, cross arms with the heir of a devil clan and last but not least, confrontation with one of our top men, now vice-general governor of our race, and the resurrection of the evil spirit with the capacity put the balance of our entire existence on the Edge, Tamamo-no-Mae."

"Heheh…" I sheepishly scratch the side of my cheek. Even if I don't wanna, I did make a name for myself in the supernatural world, no? But that's what you get for messing with someone whose luck always sides with. But still, I bet this is not the whole reason for him to be here.

"As such, we have given up on your case considering your lack of interest regarding us, and instead decided to turn our attention to more urgent and agreeable matters, especially the affairs regarding the welsh red dragon and the English white dragon, the peace conference between the three factions, the Khaos Brigade, Qlippoth, etc. etc. etc. ." Right, that makes sense: kick the spoiled and troublesome brat so it can make space for others who _really_ want their help and guidance. I should feel bad for myself and a bit angry considering that it means Azazel, the man I was said it was my father, had no interest in me as his son but as an experiment of his own, but I am not, not at all. I am not a child to have this kind of reaction, even if it hurts a little. He's going astray with this, this is also not the reason why he came here; to spat on my face. Lord Shemhazai looks at me once again. "However, I'm here today to ask a favor for you: Please, help us in this time of need. Despite your actions against other factions, your strength and resolve were admirable, that's why we left you alone, because we, he knew you could take care of yourself regardless of adversity. But now, something big has emerged, something that, if left unchecked, can unleash a horror and destruction we hitherto undreamt of."

"Hey, only I can say pretentious and complicated stuff like ' _hitherto undreamt of_ '. Please don't take that from me." I chirped under my breath, but soon adopted a more serious approach to this mess. "But, say, you did say you were going to leave me alone since I know how to take care of myself, so why now? What gives? Why don't you guys send one of those so-urgent and agreeable matters you were so focused on? Like the welsh dragon or the white dragon? Or even better, more of those angels and devils you are so friends with now?"

"Because, Kokuto Kurokami, both of them already went there in the said mission. Or rather, one was already missing, the white one, and the red one has come to his aid, and we didn't get a signal from him ever since." Suddenly, the air around the room grew cold, colder than even the North Pole, as his expression and mood turns somber, dark. I couldn't help but to draw an uneasy line with my lips with the sudden change of mood, Lord Shemhazai looking down on the floor and sitting back on the sofa with a thinking pose. "And not just them: some of our best agents, the best high-class devils, the most powerful angels and even some gods already entered the realms of said place, but the moment their enter there, all the connections to the outer world are cut, and none of them have come back since. It has been almost a week, and no one has come back…"

"Creepy." I said with a disgusted expression, like a child hearing about reproduction would. It's both scary and really creepy to hear that, its more like a plot of an horror movie if anything else, but he seems a lot concerned about the whereabouts of those big-shots. Not that I remember, I noticed that neither the president of the student council or the previous president or the other Madonnas of Kuoh academy were around the whole week, and I do remember that idiot Saji revealing that they were devils and stuff. So that's that, I guess. Even so. "But Lord Shemhazai, if all those big-shots went there and none of them have come back ever since, what makes you think I'll make any difference there? I lack the light element all of your kin has, and while I admit I'm a beast when I want to be, and a marvelous and stylish beast to top it off, I don't think I have what it takes to succeed on such. After all, I'm just me, despite being the son of a fallen angel."

"…" He says nothing, but only looks back at me with a frown. I thought for a second that he would really nag a piece of me with some of his light weapons-thingy, but then Lord Shemhazai reached for inside his trench coat and from there, picked a small, brown leather book and tossed to me across the table. As I could see, there was a golden worn-out 'A' on the cover. A book? How thoughtful, when did he know that I like some good reading? "You are… ' _The man who always has luck by his side_ ', are you not? Before he sealed himself with the beast of the Apocalypse, your father wanted me to give this to you in case this day ever comes. Turns out, according to him, you with this book will become our last resort regarding this whole affair. He didn't specify, but he says this is his trump card."

"Cute, this is such a gap moe for what I heard about him. I bet this is only a practical joke or something…" I said with a laugh, reaching for said book with a hand and opening it to take a small read on it, expecting porn or some form of niche of his. I first snapped the small golden string holding the covers tight shut, the started to peruse through the pages, all nigh-yellow and worn-out, like this is a really old book, almost a relic. Let's see, I am expecting almost a laugh from this book…

…

…

Oh…

…

Oh my God.

…

Well…

 _Shit_.

"Huh… Lord Shemzahai, does… Does anyone else know about this book? Have you taken a read on it or anybody else…?" I questioned him with a hand sign. I mean, wow, this book is not a memoir or an epic by Azazel, but what is written here is… Important, really important. To trust me with such, there must some kind of mistake. Lord Shemzahai, however, shakes his head negatively.

"No, not at all. This is… One of his oldest books, one which I would always see him writing on. According to him, this is a… Research book, and now, it is yours." He simply replies, holding his head a bit low in order to weight the responsibilities he's giving me with the passing of this book. I honestly can't blame him, because if what is written here is true, then he might have a clue of what is going on, even if not in the extend of this book. He let ouit a small snicker at the thought. "Funny. I always thought this as his little funny books of wonders, in which he'd write about some of his fantasies or maybe some quotes he would write to himself in order to look cool to others, and now, apparently, this book is our trump card to stop a true catastrophe to come forth. Talk about an error in judgement…"

"Yeah…" I murmur to myself, looking down on what is written throughout the pages of his little opus and feeling the cold sweat running down my head. Talk about a book of jokes, but this one is not funny at all, not funny at all. I take a look at one particular paragraph, and turn to the guest. "Lord Shamhazai, you said that the… Red Dragon and the White Dragon were already there. Say, do you think that… They might find each other in there? Worse, did they find each other already?"

"Like I said, Kokuto Kurokami, we lost signal from them the moment they enter that place, so I am not sure about their current whereabouts. But knowing how strong both of them are, I have no doubt that they already found each other inside." He turns to me with a puzzled and confused look, like I just exploded with no reason, and with that new information, I just might as well do just that. Another chill runs down my spine, this means that we're running out of time before that happens. I knew that after all this time of peace, something of this caliber would show up soon or later. Just my luck. Lord Shemhazai sighs again. "I know this might be frightening, and I would venture in such myself if I could, but this event is already disrupting the balance of this world just by existing, and even with the combined forces of me, Lord Ajuka and the remaining Gods, we can barely contain the power that lies within. We lost our best men to it, including Ikuse himself, and to reach for you is… A desperate attempt. Accept it, Kokuto Kurokami, and we'll be grateful enough to never ever approach you ever again, no matter what you might act as in the future. If you don't… Then there won't be a world for you to venture any longer."

"Tch. I accept it. I got no choice, anyway." I said, closing the book then putting inside my jacket as I adjust the flower on my head, the ring on my hand and the small sword-shaped necklace on my throat. Lord Shemhazai looks up to me with a surprised yet doubtful expression, and blinks once, twice, also standing up next to me. Im not doing this for the kindness of my heart, of course, but what is written on this book… No, in this Necronomicon, I can only call it a cursed knowledge. Fallen angels, Azazel specially, have been living for a hell of a long life to know something like that. I pick my small briefcase still filled with holy swords and guns and bullets and turned to lord Shemzahai. "I am not doing this from the kindness of my heart, Lord Shemhazai. I just feel like in debt with the man that was Azazel, and if he asks for me to do something, I shall do it. I am not… An ungrateful child, nor am I a spoiled guy. Do not think I am going to join this Grigori or something."

"…" He looks at me with a discerning look, only to sigh and put up a faint and tired smile. I didn't like that at all, he looks he's looking down on me or something. He stands tall for once ever since he visited, and turns to a random direction, giving me a view of his slender, tall back. "You don't look even remotely close to your father, by face or spirit, but I am not uncertain that you carry his blood within you."

"And whats that suppose to mean?" I inquire with a curious eyebrow.

"Nothing. It nothing but a jest of mine." And I can sense that his sense of humour suddenly vanishes as, out of the sudden, he points his fingers forward, and from it, in front of him, appears a bright, emerald-coloured magical circle, which illuminates my entire room without a single shadow. He turns to me one last time, and his parting words before getting swallowed by the circle were: "When you feel prepared, take the first step inside the portal. I shall be waiting you by the other side… Kokuto Kurokami."

And then he vanishes by the other side. Is this a challenge or something? He really is looking down on me, typical fallen angel if what Saji said back there was true. Well, I should be hesitant to do something of this caliber, that not even someone like him and the highest grades of gods and supernatural creatures could take care of, but if what is written in this book is true, than I have no choice but to go on, and waiting to something to fix this, even with luck, will only make things worse. With nothing else in my, I grip the handle of my briefcase tightly, summon Tama by my side, and jump right into the portal, ready to face anything that should come by the other side…

Except what exactly stood in my way: The moment I passed through the portal, I was greeted by the visage of a wrecked, deserted small town which turned to ruins, not a single soul around except by the bugs and decomposing skeletons on the streets, all of them with their expressions contorted into faces of horror. The sky, painted on a sick tone of grey, didn't showcase signs of either weather or pollution, but rather an ominous herald of bad things that had and will come. However, what caught my attention the most what the ominous tower at the heart of said city, which extended from the floor all the way to the unreachable heavens, fire and brimstones coming from the otherwise dark and obscure walls of the construction, like a place coming from the bowels of hell itself. I was so shocked, I looked for something, anything, to anchor me to reality, and when I noticed, there he was, Lord Shemhazai, looking at the unreachable top of the tower, hands bleeding from gripping his hands too hard. So this is the place, right?

"This is the place, Kokuto Kurokami…" He murmurs to himself, his voice carrying all the pain and despair of something who just all hope just by staring at the tower coated in stoicism as the only way to coup with the inevitable darkness ahead. "The pathway the previous Lord of the Underworld carved in his wakening, the endless suffering of the damned, now reaching for the heavens in order to destroy the balance of this world. The way to the depths of despair and suffering, the tower of the Demon Lord: **Inferno**."

" **Inferno** …" I repeated, looking at the tower in front of us, gritting my teeth.

I was hoping that was just a false alarm and that Azazel ought be wrong, but this is no mistake: This is the exact tower that is written on the book, and if the red and white dragons are already inside, worse, if they already at the top, then it might be already too late. Tch, sure, that is a hell of a parting gift card you left me with…

 _Father_.


	22. The city of woe and master of Strings

**I had more fun writing this chapter than I thought I would, even more so with a broken keyboard. I hope it came down nicely since it is a start of one major arc in this story now. I hope you are all liking it so far and leave your thoughts down there on the reviews for a growing author. Thanks a bunch for your interest up to here and have a nice day! Today, Kokuto finds an old friend... yeah, right.**

 **DISCLAIMER: DxD belongs to Ichiei Ishibumi and its respective magazines. The OCs are mine, tho.**

* * *

 **Inferno** , the ominous tower of the End. The herald of the destruction of the World, and change bringer. At least this is what Azazel's book calls it, anyway. A supernatural, demonic dark tower built in the underworld that now reaches beyond the heavens, up to the limits of the universe. The sign… That the world is ending.

"Sheesh, talk about a downtown in the shreds…" I said to myself, walking side by side with the current Governor General of the Fallen angels and my father's old friend, Shemhazai, through the destroyed city the crisis is taking place in and kicking a few debris in my way towards said tower which apparently has swallowed the previous hopes for this nightmare to end, only me remaining to clean up this mess. I may look relaxed and concentrated, I'm actually quite hesitant to go in and face whatever is waiting me inside Inferno. And if Azazel's book is anything to go by, in the worst hypothesis this might as well be the end of everything, no turning back. "So, lord Shemhazai, this is the Inferno tower, right? As expected, this is quite tall tower and stuff… But I heard you guys can fly quite high with those black wings of yours, so why don't you use those? Doesn't seem like a big trouble, especially for someone like you."

"You underestimate our resources, Kokuto Kurokami. Do you really think that we didn't think of reaching the peak of the tower by flight? Unfortunately…" He didn't even had the time to finish his sentence, as something like a shooting star fell from the sky and landed right in front of us in a cloud of smoke and fumes. It took me a while to see what was it due to the curtain of smoke it arose, but in the end, I could finally see the horrified image of a humanoid abomination scorched to death, smoke and sparkles coming out of its empty eye sockets and toothless mouth and fire still flaring away from the wingbones, in a position that implied that this one was in midflight when it was attacked by… Something, burning it alive. I turned my stare to Lord Shemhazai, and he sighs, covering his eyes in sorrow as he summons a magical circle with his hands to get rid of the corpse in front of us in a show of light. "This is what happens: Not only Inferno has become an indescribably tall tower, those who dare to cheat their way up are met with its own defense mechanism and anti-escape system. It wouldn't be hell if it was that easy to escape. The only way up… It's through its treacherous insides."

"Just like in the Holy Satire." I chirped to myself, faulting a new steps behind the fallen angel governor so that no other unidentified falling debris of people would surprise-crash on me. Just in case, of course, after all, I am still all human. And as such, we continued to walk towards the tower of darkness. I look at the sick cloudy sky, and notice that above our heads there are no birds or bats, but human-like people flying with bat, pigeon and crow wings on their back. So, those are the called angels, fallen angels and devils. They're less lively than I thought they would be, also a bad fashion sense, but eh, what do I know. "Those are your cohorts, right? I bet they're not as near as powerful as yourself, right? Any reason for them to be here?"

"They might not be part in the exploration of Inferno, but don't underestimate them, Kokuto Kurokami. Those fallen angels, angels and devils are working hard to assure the total evacuation of humans in the vicinity and using Intel and their upmost limit to not turn this entire event into utter chaos." He declares as we walk closer and closer to the Inferno tower. Now that I think about, while I did notice the disappearance of some of my classmates and the lack of supernatural activity in Kuoh academy, I didn't hear any news or reports regarding that ominous tower, and he did say this has been going on for at least a week, if not more so. Makes sense, with a thing like this sprouting out of nowhere, this place would've become a hell of a mushroom field in no time, and yet I doubt that would've solved things. I'll give him this, they have a hell of a tenacity. "Even so, regardless of our combined powers, the tower is sturdy as they come. No matter how powerful we are as a unity, Inferno was built before times written, so even our best efforts are of no use against it."

"Well, doesn't that make me feel important…" I snickered to myself, earning a groan from the fallen angel next to me, but I assure him with a hand up that I mean no cruel jest. So even with the combined forces of heaven and hell, there is nothing to match Inferno, even their best from inside and outside. But of course, If they were to call me earlier, this whole affair would've been solved in the blink of an eye, Hahahahah… Fake laugh, by the way, to disguise real fear and insecurity.

"Azazel told me to call for you when times such as this come, and as his friend and right-hand man, I will fulfill this request as his wish, no matter what. For this world he has fallen with and for." He declares with nothing on his eyes, not even bothering to look at me with the sheer seriousness of his tone, so serious it made me shut myself up out of shallow respect. I am quite honestly surprised about this Lord Shemhazai, apparently my father's best friend and right-hand man. He must've really loved Azazel, and while I can't understand or care who or what he was for the entire world or specifically for Lord Shemhazai, I have no choice but to pay some respect for him. He's my father, after all. After a few more steps, we ended by the borders of the city, and into the ground zero of the Inferno Tower, a marble-like stairway leading to a huge pearl-white double-doored portal, looking more like a huge cathedral entrance than an entrance to hell, really. Lord Shemhazai took one last footing at the start of the steps. "Here we are, at the entrance of Inferno. This is the farthest I can guide you to. From here on, I will help contain and disguise Inferno in order to avoid chaos among humankind. From here, you're on your own, Kokuto Kurokami."

"Just the way it should be." I smirk to myself, adjusting my school jacket with some of my weapons and gripping the briefcase where some light weapons are stored, now taking my way upstairs in order to reach for the gates leading to literal hell in reverse or something. I thought my wave of bad luck died down after the Himejima incident last year and my coronation as the new demon lord of the sixth heaven, but where that took me in the end after all this time? Back to the annals of the supernatural world, I'll tell. But still, if my father is indeed dead, or sealed somewhere, the least I can do to give him some rest is helping his kin. That will also give me some peace of mind. Before I completely departed to find myself facing hell itself, I turned around to face my father's best friend, and made a cool hand sign with a wink. "So, I guess this is a 'see you later', Lord Shemhazai. Don't worry, I will help you all and be sharp for tomorrow's classes. After all, I am Kokuto Kurokami, the man which luck always sides with. I have… No reason to lie to you, even if I just met you a few minutes ago. After all, you're Azazel's best friend of something. To not honour you would leave a bad taste in my mouth."

"Kokuto Kurokami, before you go, I should ask you one more thing: What is your ambition?" I turned back to face the Governor General of the Grigori as he asks me this pertinent question that has been lingering around ever since I discovered my identity as a hybrid of a supernatural creature. We crossed eyes, and then I make a face and a shrug. "I am sure that you are aware of the organization of the Grigori, and even though I can sense from you no light element, I can assume that you hold potential. You told Ikuse you have no interest in the prestige or wealth, even women are far away from your radar. But for you to come here with no questions asked, with no hesitation, I ask you: what is your ambition?"

"My ambition?" I pounder to myself a bit, and shrugged in the end. Yeah, I have no interest in prestige or wealth beyond what I already have, women are complicated and even scary from my point of view, and now that I have a PS4 back at home I have no reason to fight at all, but still, eh, maybe it's a bit of pride speaking louder than I could imagine, maybe it's the sense of duty I have regarding that monstrosity, or maybe, I dunno, I have some kind of unconditional but hidden love for my father, and honoring him with this is the only way for me to reciprocate now that he's dead or something. In the end, I think I got my answer: "My ambition, lord Shemhazai… Is to be someone people are jealous of."

"…" He silently inquires me with an arched eyebrow.

"I want to be someone who people are jealous of. Like that kid with the new game console who never seems to be playing it, or people who toss away they half-eaten food regardless of world hunger. I want to become someone who has something nice, but refuses to acknowledge that! I want people to seethe with rage when they see me wasting away resources and opportunities while thinking to themselves how they would use what I have to their full extend! I want to become… The King of waste!" I broad both my arms right to their full extend and made a glorious pose as in Im giving the best speech the world has ever seen! All while suddenly all the lights in our surroundings turn dim and three curtains of brightness fall under me! Lord Shemhazai looks a bit unfazed by my show of lights, and in the end, I couldn't help but to sigh and let all of that fall apart, making a grimace. "Just kidding, of course. I honestly have no bigger ambitions than earthly desires and a bit of peace of mind. I am already living the high of my youth with a good school, good grades, a nice mother and a girlfriend. Plus, I have high chances to go to an university, so I have nothing to worry about for now. When the time comes, I'll do something and maybe join the Grigori or something. But eh, living the prime of my youth to the fullest is not a bad feeling."

"Wasting your youth with meaningless pleasures, and losing potential for the immediate. It would be hypocritical for me to say for you to stop, but please reconsider your choices in life, Kokuto Kurokami." He sighs and put his hand on his own head to adjust the little purple bonnet on top of it, and for that I go ahead to slightly bow to him in understanding. It's not like I don't think about the future, it is just not one of my top priorities right now. Besides, I might die today, so good luck convincing me or anyone here to think about the future. "It surprises me how alike you are to him, yet there are some telling differences between both of you."

"Again, I will take that as a compliment." I made a V-sign with my fingers and turned my attention to the gates waiting for me at the end of this staircase.

With one last sigh of relief and desperation, I started to get on the stairs into the unknown, the stares of lord Shemhazai losing me as he sprouts his several black wings from his back and flies away to the edge of the city in order to do whatever he was supposed to do, leaving me completely alone here. I can only grip my briefcase and walk upwards, leading to the gates of Inferno with nothing else. In wonder what awaits me from my lost soul in this gloomy place. From the skies, nothing but the cloudy ominous lack of divine light, and from the ground, the carcasses of those who lost their lives and homes for the destruction caused by this tower of Doom, who despite its devilish existence, still presents itself so immaculate, so pure, like a mockery that is the way into paradise. What am I doing? Poetry in the middle of my way to hell? I feel a bit Italian today…

Step after step, joke after joke, I finally reach for the gates of hell, which just like the stairway, it was colored am immaculate white-pearl tone, like if it was made from the most beautiful marble in existence, but from my point of view at least, I can sense the true nature of this portal, reeking of an aura I can only describe as foul and unholy to the highest caliber, accompanied by the craved sign on it, which wrote ' _Abandon all hope, all ye who enter'_. A two-doored doorway that leads to the evilest place in the earth, and here I am, at the roots of this whole place. I reached for the door and knocked a few times with the knuckles of my right hand, the vibrations echoing throughout the whole door…

"Hello, anybody home? Pizza time, tastes like the souls of the damned or whatever." I called for someone, anyone, to come and let me in, but as expected, or maybe not, no one came to answer the door much to my dismay. Maybe pushing it would work, since there is no handle for me to pull? I gain all of my strength and put both of my palms against the door to then push it as strong as I could… Which wasn't very much since the door didn't even budge. I pushed, I hit, I kicked, and all that I got were bruised knuckles and knees! Uweeeh~, this sucks~, the least Lord Shemhazai could do was to at least open the door for me~. Wait, does that mean everybody that went inside had to deal with this door? That's not fair, I am not as strong as they are~. Unless… Sigh. "Damn, no use, then. I guess I'll have to turn around and ask Lord Shemhazai to maybe give a help or something… _ASLAN_!"

 ***PUNCH!***

And then the whole door trembled whole, a big if not relatively shallow crack appeared on the surface of it, onto where a gauntleted hand rested, my own hand. Yeah, my hands, feet and face were now covered in pure shining silver supernatural metal, armoring me with claw-like gauntlets and greaves and a mouth-covering mask decorated with sharp fangs. I can sense the supernatural call from inside those weapons, as their lining and cracks were oozing supernatural steam! This is also the most damage I've being doing since! I knew this sword would come in handy in the future, didn't expect it to use it so late, though… Whatever.

"And… Ora!"

 ***PUNCH!***

"ORA!"

 ***PUNCH!***

"ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA ORA…!" And after that one attack, I didn't stop, unleashing a barrage of punches against the door in rapid successions, Aslan giving the boost in speed and strength that I needed for this job, and little by little, the door started to crumble away in dust, the pure marble would turn and crack and the scripture that turned into nothing but rubbish and nonsense! I dealt one final punch, and with a twirl to do a revolution, I kick the door for once, unleashing a flurry of kicks now! "WOOTAH! ATATATATATATATATATATATATAH…!"

And in the end, the door was weaken and frail, all of its former glory now in ruins thanks to the flurry of punches and kicks I unleashed on it, the marks of violence, all of them shaped like a fox's head, decorating now the darken, trembling and fragile gates of hell, which was just a blow away from falling apart. I stopped on my tracks, made a pose in front of the crumbling portal and extended my hands to it, all of five fingers pointing at the entrance while my other hand was forming a fist as I pulled it as far as I could. The Coup de grâce, the final nail in the coffin of this door, and I'm gonna do it with style! Feet deep on the ground and pointing forward, left hand aiming while the other was making a fist. With just a nail of distance between my pointed fingers and the door, I took a deep breath, aimed at the breaking point of that structure, and then…!

"One-inch punch."

 ***PUNCH!***

 ***BOOOOM!***

Finishing with my idol's ultimate technique, closing my fingers into a fist to unleash the power of an earthquake in that single inch between me and the obstacle in front of me! The impact was too much, the whole base of the Inferno tower trembled with such fury and power, and the door guarding it didn't open as so much as exploded with the sheer potency of that one-inch punch, bursting itself open from inside as cracks and rubbles flew everywhere! In the end, the gates of hell were no more, only a bright light coming from inside. Despite its origins, it was warm and comforting, urging me get inside of it, to literally go to hell and face the demons inside!

So, this is it, right? If I go inside, I have no idea if I can ever make it out alive, and even so, as myself. I would be abandoning my life, my not!girlfriend, my mother and now my newly-acquired PS4, only for people that I barely know and this world that I give no damns about. Maybe it would be better if I should turn around and give this mission as a failure and waste my days away in blissful ignorance, waiting for the end Azazel's book as predicted, and die a peaceful and normal death, no matter what the book in my possession says…

Hah, no.

"Wait for me, devil. Let's dance under the pale moonlight…" I turned around and, suspending the tips of my toes on the edge of the portal leading to down below, let myself fall onto my back, letting the lights of hell embrace me from behind all while looking directly in the eyes everything I left beforehand. No sorrow, no regrets, no joy or pleasures, only the simple procedure. All in the life of Kokuto Kurokami, the man who always has luck by his side, who now… Welcomes hell with open arms!

And so, the bright light from the annals of the world reaches for me, as a pleasing sensation of somnolence starts to creep on my mind, as if I were in the womb of the world, the birth of all creation. Still in free fall, I close my eyes as brightness starts to consume everything I stare at, and then, finally… Darkness.

…

…

…

" **GASP**! Arf… Arf… Arf…!"

…

"So, where am I now?"

This might sound like a rhetorical question, but actually it isn't, not at all. I know I should be in hell, in the depths of the Inferno, you know, the underworld of brimstone and fire, where the souls of the damned await the trumpets of the Apocalypse suffering in eternal damnation, but I actually don't feel like that. I got this instead: I awake at the sands of a beach, being taken ashore like a shipwrecked on the pale ground of grains, and up forward, a small town of white walls and deserted streets. I feel some coldness towards my feet, and I notice the waves hitting me from the feet up, but for some reason, I am not wet or anything. I get up from the sandy ground, dusted myself a few times and stretched myself to get rid of the stiffness my fall gave me. I look around the deserted shore, and fortunately my briefcase of light weapons was shoved right next to me, so I picked it up, cleaned it up a little from the grains and looked forward towards the tropical-looking city…

"So… Is this hell? A bit too welcoming in my case. But I don't think I should complain." I wondered to myself as I scanned around for any clues, and my eyes land on a small board stuck on the sandy grounds written in clear red letters: ' _Welcome to Acheron beach'_. Acheron beach, Acheron beach… I picked the book hidden inside my jacket, snapped the little golden chord off and flew my finger across the pages until I saw the name I wanted. **Acheron** , the name of the river in the first floor. So there is no mistake, I am really into the Inferno. Good to know. I guess this means it's all downhill from here, quite literally I might add. I pick my stuff and walk into the city by the shore. "As they say, _he who desires but acts not, breeds pestilence_. Better get started or else things will only get worse from here, if they're not already rock bottom."

And so I follow my path through the sandy lands, into the forest of concrete right in front of me. The sun here, devoid of any real warmth, shines above my head, the sound of waves against the grains growing thinner and thinner inside my ears until they finally vanish, and my foot stomps hard on the floor. Finally reaching for the small percentage of civilization, I take a look around: a city devoid of any living soul, with blank and short two-store tall buildings and equally white floor of concrete that would echo a hollow sound on every step. I have the impression that I know this place or something. I flip the book open and soon find out what this place is: the first circle, **Limbo town**.

" _Limbo_ , the first circle and floor of the Inferno. A place of hopelessness but not despair, of joylessness yet not pain. The edge of salvation and damnation… Now I'm feeling **lucky**." I snap the book close and hide it inside my vests as I walk towards the only entrance into the town, an upwards staircase leading to the heart of Limbo. According to the book, the fissure leading to the second floor and the circle down lies inside of it. Okay, at least some lead from where to start…

"Hey, young man. Over here."

"Eh…?" I know this voice, I know this smell of soup, noodles and pork. I turn myself to the direction of that voice, and surprise-surprise, there it is, that little wheeled ramen stand and next to it that same afro-haired, dark-skinned bright man with aviator glasses obscuring his eyes and smoking a cigarette between his teeth. Oh-hoh, Mr. Hebihara! He's waving at me again, and so I wave back at him. "Hey, mister. It has been a while. What are you doing here… Of all places?"

"Like I said before, lad: expanding horizons, meeting new recipes and new people, spreading the ramen love throughout the world and earning my dear living with my passion, the usual. Nothing too big…" He declares with a smile coming from his shiny white teeth despite his smoking habit, flicking his cigarette off his mouth with his tongue and putting himself behind the counter of his beloved ramen stand, which was now writing _Hebihara Ramen_ in bright neon lights. I… Shouldn't bother to think about it too much. After all that happened last year, I decided to think not much of anything that happens around. He might be an youkai, a devil, an angel, or he simply died and didn't realize it yet, I don't care anymore, so better mind my own business and make him realize it on his own. "And you look quite healthy yourself, young man. It has been a while, but you've change nothing over the years. How is your little date-goer going, sonny?"

"Eh, same as usual: badmouth, a few more dates and duty-calling. It waited a good while for it to show up, though. But I feel this is going to be a hell of a ride." I snickered to myself at the small joke I made in my head, and the man next to the ramen stand also let out a small laugh as he flicked another cigarette and fire onto his system. I sigh in order to get the clouds out of my head and slip my phone out. No signal, no internet, this is really hell for what's worth. Before I knew it, a small bowl of ramen slides across the counter all the way to stop right in front of me on the counter. I look at it, then back at Mr. Hebihara. "Let me guess, it's on the house, right?"

"For old time's sake, sonny. Traveling on business becomes tiresome after a while, so cooking for an old friend feels nice for a change of pace. Not to mention my favorite costumer when business are a bit on the sluggish way." He flashes a smile at me, and just like last time, I had no reason to refuse such delicacy, despite the fact that I stand on Hell's gates. I passed through the small red curtain with the name of the shop and stood behind the counter, picking my chopsticks and snapping them in half in order to eat the noodles in front of me, chomping down that strong, dense soup with corn, bean sprouts and a bit of octopus, cuttlefish and clams. "For my very-special costume and in order to bring up the gorgeous atmosphere around, here's one special Sapporo-style miso ramen for you. Eat up before it gets cold!"

"Well then, thanks for the food." And so I did my usual thing, clapping my hands in order to honor the food and now slurping on those delicious noodles and soup, munching on some clams and cuttlefishes and enjoying the strong aroma of fish coming from the oozing steam of the bowl, all the while Mr. Hebihara blows smoke from his nostrils while reflecting the shallow superficial Sun on his dark aviator glasses.

" _Ripped soul, turned to ashes; the maniacal laughter of the great king that rules the undead with a mighty fist, powerful, yet forever powerless in his own hollow domain. In this place abandoned by divine light, lies the maze leading to even dread horrors down below. What follows are the sonata of a maze, lying walls and the master of strings. Touched by the heart for his song, eternal slumber of hopelessness_."

"I see that poetry didn't even leave your mind just yet. Its good to have a hobby, ever wondered in turning that into a career?" I joked at him while taking one last sip from the delicious hot fish soup from the bowl, and his only response was to turn around and shine me a toothy grin. Maybe he already considered such, but then again, he does make very delicious and various ramen soups, and I think even in a place like this he doesn't lack costumers, as dead as they might be, so I guess that's that. As always, I pick my wallet, slapped two 1000-yen bills onto the counter, and turned around to seek my next adventure. "But with that being said, I'm on a hurry, so if you excuse I shall be taking my way into this place and face whatever awaits me in this journey…"

"Oh man, now that I've finally found someone to chat in this desert of a place… Ah, but no worries, you're young and free, so go ahead to whatever you must do. Just don't forget that there is always a time for ramen!" Mr. Hebihara pouts for a very brief moment, but then opens a smile, putting out his cigarette on his own hand and flipping from his fist a small silver card, which them he flips it at me. I catch said card in midair, and under closer inspection, I noticed that it is yet another one of his special cards, this time, the drawing was that of a wanderer over a cliff, smiling in blissful ignorance. "And don't forget to pick your special gift for eating at the one and only Hebihara! I see from that card that luck around you hasn't run out over a year or so!"

"Heh, right." I bitter contemplated to myself while putting said card on my wallet for my ever-growing collection of those. They must worth something, but out of good nature, it is always nice to be remembered that I am dear somewhere by someone. That is also the reason why I have Azazel's photo on me too, sigh. I turn around and resumed my journey through the entrails of that city. "For the first time, I am beginning to doubt if Ive been really lucky all this time at all…"

"Don't say that, sonny. It may not look like it, but luck is always on the side of those who believe in it." I hear one more cheerful encouragement from the man I gave my back to, as my ears can hear the wheels of his little ramen stand begin to roll, being guided by light, but firm steps on the ground, as little by little his presence started to faint from my presence, but not before muttering his final words before being engulfed by the limbo. " _Fool of Great Luck, Demon Lord of the sixth heaven, Walk the path you must, into the entrails of the city of lost souls, following the song of hopelessness, and be misguided no more. Now, to the garden of Madness_ …"

"Yeah." I muttered under my breath, following suit to the first steps leading to the deepest parts of the Underworld…

Like I mentioned before, despite its hellish and horrid origins, Limbo is a quiet, simple and monotonous place. Once I stomped on the last step of that staircase, I was faced with a small, deserted, pretty straightforward street devoid of any life but my own. Despite the ominous silence and lifelessness, it was fairly pleasant and calm, my steps would echo through the immaculate walls and my shadow would creep on the concrete ground, but nothing would move or react to my presence, much more like a ghost town or something. Now that I think about it, this town kinda reminds me of Santo Domingo from one of mom's trips to the Dominican Republic, of course, minus the people and I'm sure mother have never visited Inferno before. But still, creep as hell… Hah, another joke.

I walk and walk, rubbing my finger across the wall on my left as I do so I won't get lost, but nothing seems to change or work at all. I hear murmurs on the wind, the wonderful and colorful graffiti on the walls seems to mock me with its bright and cheerful colors, and just seeing my shadow everywhere I go is already making me a bit paranoid. I hear… Voices, voices onto the wind, numerous voices blowing away like grains in the Sahara, yet I can only see silhouettes of beings by the tall, unreachable windows and balconies, none of them even remotely human, but eyes staring directly at me, before continuing to talk among themselves. Am I gettind insane? Or is this Inferno's usual greeting for newcomers? I don't know, I don't know…

But suddenly, I don't know how, I start to hear a song. Not just any song, but a very melancholic song, enough to restore some of my energy and make me go forward into the depths of this place. What is this? A song in a place like this? Still tracing an invisible line across the walls of limbo with the tip of my finger in order to not get lost, I followed that same song from street to street, corner to corner, not fainting in the slightest and only growing louder and softer as I walked closer to the song. In the end, hearing such across the empty, deserted streets of Limbo, I found myself into a plaza. The rounded street where I can assume is the heart of the town, as all the buildings around me construct a circle on the broader, wilder main street, nothing more to it except the roman-style fountain in the middle of said circle, a few chairs and tables for sightseeing and a new figure around, sitting on the edge of the spring, a harp on his hand and wearing a dapper tuxedo and a large hat on his head, the brink of it covering his facial features, but I can still see a ghost of a smile from the darkness of his face.

"Hello, traveler. Did you like my song? It is a song for travelers, for a safe and lovely trip to whatever their heart calls." I hear a familiar voice coming from the singer and harper and I hear a small hum from his lips. I arch an eyebrow in curiosity, hands on my pocket, looking around to find any other threat to this conversation. I ended up seeing a black bird flying around, the only one in the fake sky. Huh, neat. A minute passed, and the harper sighs. "I am sorry for its melancholic tone, though. Nothing but loneliness and suffering has assaulted my heart ever since my dear beau fell victim of the cold grasps of Hades, and even with the opportunity to bring her back, oh woe me, I failed, and she once again fell into the cold darkness. It seems that, in my sorrow, I let some of it bleed through my songs. How I wish to repair any of those, as my pride as a musician…"

"Your songs have a lot more feelings than anything Ive ever heard, musician. If anything, you should more of that feeling into your music, you would be a rockstar in no time." I jest a little with the click of my tongue, and the musician silently gasp for a second, only to draw a smile of relief on his lips, satisfied. I like making people happy even for a while. But even so, not time to lose, I need to the way deeper into this hellhole or something. "But enough about you, I'm looking for a place where I can go even deeper here. According to the book, I need to find this Minos guy so he can lead me even deeper into the inferno. Any idea how I can do that?"

"I do not know, considering that I am allowed to be only here, in Limbo. But… To find… King Minos, the judge of the Damned? What would you ever want to talk to him, when the streets and corridors of the Limbo are the closest to heaven as us, denied by the divine force, can ever reach in this Universe?" He inquires me, lightly tipping the brink of his hat upwards in order to show me how curious he has become regarding my quest. I simply shrugged and took my way towards the only straight line out of this place.

"Because I have some things to score at the top dog of this world, and the only way I know how to is through the judge of the dead. I can only assume this is going to be a doozy. But thanks anyway…" I wonder to myself with and responded to him at the same time, walking pass him on the fountain and taking my way to the only way out. I hear a hum behind me, but didn't bother to check, I am here only as a wanderer, and nothing else. I shall not woe for the dead, as they are here rested well enough. Once I reached for the limits of this place, I was ready to face whatever lies beyond here, actually, not really, but if what the book says its true, then I have no time to waste. "So I'll be going now. I shall seek for Minos elsewhere, then. I wonder if I can find my way through this str-…"

"I see, so you are the so-called Son of the Watcher…"

"Wait, what…?"

 ***BAM!*** And my line of through was cut short as the path leading towards my next destination was suddenly locked, or rather, blocked, as several, thounsands of black and white swords sprouted from the sides and ground to shield that passage from any intruder that would be stupid enough to try to enter that forest of blades. This is a bad sign, a bad sign indeed! Not only that, I can sense something coming this w-…!

 ***ZOOM~!***

 ***STAB!***

It was too sudden, and no matter how fast I move, I couldn't even blink to see the end of what just happened: sprouting from my chest as a sharp, almost unbearable pain pierces my back, I let out a wail of pain as a fountain of blood bursts from my chest, and I lose control over my body from the waist down! From the wound in my body, I see a black blade with red edges, emitting an aura of complete darkness, and consuming my entire power as blood gushes from it, dripping it in crimson and bile, as I vomit scarlet bile for myself, and everything is little by little covered in darkness… At least in Azathoth's vision.

 ***ZOOM~!***

"Aslan…!"

 ***BAM!***

"Gwah…!" And even with the prediction, turning around while activating Aslan and crossing my arms and gauntlets in a X in order to shield myself to that otherwise fatal blow, the assault was too much even for me, making Aslan tremble to the last tip and jet me backwards as I guard myself now against a powerful energy slash! The beam of evil power was too powerful, and pushed me to a wall, cracking it completely and almost crushing me to death! I fall on my two feet, regaining some of my stamina, and then vomited a bit of blood, feeling like something just sucked part of my entire energy. Oh, right. Lady Tamamo did say that using Azathoth without her help was dangerous. Well, one more to add to the list.

"Impressive. Is this… Supernatural steel? And it seems to be special, really, to deflect and protect a mere human from the power of **Gram** , the strongest demon sword." I hear among the dust caused by the clash between the two weapons, the voice of the musician, and looking closer to the curtain of debris and dust, I can see a standing silhouette of him by the other side, holding both my hands up for a possible clash. However, when the dust settled and revealed the figure behind it all, I couldn't believe my eyes. Holding that large claymore-like broadsword of black and red and having the wind blow his hat away, there was the musician, who was nobody else but…

"Yuuto… Kiba? Yuuto Kiba? Servant of the resident devil of Kuoh city?" I inquired. Yeah, the pretty boy of Kuoh academy of golden hair, beauty marks under his sharp blue eyes and feminine form was the musician wearing that dapper tuxedo was now holding that sword that is apparently called Gram or something, sporting a sharp yet hollow stare back at me, devoid of any emotion unless hostility. He clicks his tongue, and picks his sword Gram by the golden handle with both his hands.

"Yuuto Kiba? I have no recollection of this name. For I am **Orpheus** , son of the Sun God and the beautiful muse Calliope, the Thracian musician of sad notes, crying for his beloved Eurydice. And now… Residing in Limbo, the circle of the virtuous pagans!" He declares in an almost bombastic tone, but still remaining calm and smiley, like his usual self. Wait, wait. Is this a joke? Is he role-playing or something? He doesn't look he's joking, but I know this guy fairly much. I have no doubt, this is prince pretty-boy of Kuoh academy, but something about him isn't clicking. Also, what's with this Orpheus crap? "Now, son of the watcher, who I was waiting for, I shall hault your quest to Lord Lucifer, and end this era of suffering! Sword… BURST!"

"Wait, are you seriously thinking you are…?!"

 ***VOOOOSH!***

 ***BAM! BAM! BAM!***

"Whoa there, bird-brain! If you think you can reason with this dude, you are as brainless as him, shits-for-matter!" But in a swift move and before I could even complete my sentence, Kiba craved his sword onto the ground and summoned several swords from there, all of them aiming at me! I was so distracted, I was about to be stabbed by them, but before that could happen, something snapped me from my feet and flew me away from that burst of blades. I look up to the thing holding me by the collar, and I saw: it was that black bird from before, dark as the night itself and the size of an eagle. A bird that can talk?! I looked at it, and it turned its golden eyes and beak towards me, speaking in a hoarse yet high voice. "These guys are no longer who you used to know. Lord Lucifer chose those who entered here by their level of strength, defeated them, stripped them of their free-will and put souls of the damned in order to serve as their foot soldiers in case any nutcase comes to stop his plan! That guy who you knew is sealed away, and that faggot Orpheus is in his head now! The only way to make him go back to normal is to exorcize the shit out of him!"

"Kiba… Is no longer controlling his own body?" I muttured to myself, seeing the hollow look on my classmates face, showing no affection or the same feeling of dread or power he used to have back in School. His scent… Is also different. I can also sense a different aura coming from him. In the end, that bird landed me on a safe spot from the swords at the plaza and landed itself on my shoulder with its silver claws. I took a moment to look at it as it stared back. "And… You were supposed to be… Sir… Milady… Sir…?"

"Vergilius. **Publius Vergilius Maro** , who lived under Augustus in the time of the false and lying Gods, before the birth of the savior, condemned to Limbo and to guide schmucks like that Tuscan man and now you. Call me **Vergil** , they all do." It spoke in almost a shriek typical of a bird, but then I sense danger coming my way, and turning around, I see the one previously known as Yuuto Kiba summoning from his hands four more swords, all of them with quite unique designs, and all of them oozing complete death. The bird on my shoulder shrieks yet again and takes flight. "Whoops, but enough about me! This pretty-boy seems to have quite a damage against you! All those are demon swords, and they main target are the Sons of the Lord! I rather be careful, buddy, or you'll be toast before being bread!"

"Demon Swords, eh? You do learn something every day, it seems." I sigh to myself, finally regaining all of my lost stamina after using Azathoth to put myself on my feet and activate Aslan once again. With all the commotion, I ended up losing my briefcase somewhere around, if I want to stay alive against Kiba and take care of the spirit inside of him, I gotta find it. I can only use my precognition so many times, it seems, and he's quite fast.

"You take care of him! I will give support from above and watch his movements! Don't die on me, buddy!" I hear the bird named Vergil say as he flew across the plaza with his black feathers, fast as any bird of his kind, as I turn my attention to the man in front of me who has just taken control of one of my classmates. I don't actually trust this bird much, but if he said he's gonna help me, who am I to refuse. Like I said, this trip is gonna be a doozy. "Here's a poem for you: _Eye on the price, but strength on the leg; go forth with no fear, and fuck up this fag_!"

"Son of the watcher, I am aware that, as a living person, you must have someone you love and treasure with all of your heart. As a man and a lover, it is against my spirit to kill one that might bring sorrow and sadness as I felt for my beautiful Eurydice." Kiba, or Orpheus, said to me with his sword Gram extended to me, eyes reflecting some hollow sorrow. He blinks once, twice, and then shouts. "For that, turn back now. I shall not allow anyone to reach Lord Lucifer, but I refuse to kill as well. Turn back now, and live another day less in the countdown of the Inferno! I beg of you, please withdraw and leave the Inferno!"

"No way, fag." I simply said, bumping both my gauntlets a few times to echo a metallic sound across the place and doing small jumps with my greaves to pump myself up. I have no doubts now, the only way is forward. For Azazel, and for pride, this is my turn to shine! I shadowboxed punches a few times, all of them cutting the air like a sword, and rubbed my gauntleted thumb on my nose. " _Conscience doth make cowards of us all_. C'mon, Kiba, Orpheus. Whoever is controlling that body of yours, I will shank your buttocks no matter what poor sod faces me."

"How… Unfortunate. It seems that my words doth not reaches the cold heart of those sharing the blood of the fallen. Very well, _to break my vow, to leave me in woe, to withstand the fall, to defeat my foe_." He recites, and again he craves his Gram demonic sword onto the ground, making it shake it to the core. I was expecting another burst of blades to pop out of the ground, but instead what I got was a small group of four knights, all donning dragon-styled armor, coming from small magical circles on the ground, and once all of them were solid, each of every one picked one of the demon swords next to Kiba, and made a battle pose. Oh, so five against two, that is fair… But I can always count on Tama to balance the odds! "Balance Breaker: Glory Drag Trooper!"

"Five versus two? A bit scary, but I can work with that. Tama!" And I summoned my own Sacred Gear, the string of black that is coming from my little finger that wraps and turns around itself until it becomes a black cat I know as Tama, which landed on one of my eyes and hissed against Kiba and his dragon soldiers! Brainwashed? Possessed? It doesn't really matter, duty calls, and I shall now defeat anyone standing in my way. I shadowboxed a few more times, and smirked. "Time for the grand finale, musician of woe. Gonna push other things besides strings when I'm done with you!"

"Face the power… Of the master of strings." Kiba-Orpheus said, summoning another sword with a musical keyboard as a blade while still holding Gram, dual-wielding them as he glares me with fury one more time.

The wheel of fate is turning. Heaven or hell? Let's rock!


	23. Hard rock gentle weeps of Insomnia

**And guess whos back despite the broken PC and new types away from almost throwing this keyboard away?! Just kidding, RL has been a real pain for me, but this chapter was a blast to write, and this gave me the power to continue Kokutos adventure through literal hell. But of course... There will be consequences and stuff, so get ready for some surprises and twists! But not now... Or is it?! As always, R &R, have a good day and please leave your afterthoughts below! I deeply appreciated it.**

 **NOTES: dxD belongs to Ishibumi and its respective magazines. All the songs labeled below are also copyrighted for their respetive singers and users. Have a good read while remembering that!**

* * *

...

"Sigh… You know, this may sound weird coming from me, but I don't actually consider this ability of mine as a divine blessing or anything. It's not a curse, I'll tell you that, but in a good day, this is an inconvenience at best, being this lucky like yours truly."

"…"

"The thing is, being lucky is not a fixed term, nor is a concrete concept. What do you consider being lucky? Maybe earning a good grade at school, maybe finding some money at the street, maybe winning the lottery or marrying a sweetheart and fulfill your teenage fantasy? Maybe, maybe not, however, my so-called Sacred Gear works that way: as long as I'm in a pinch, it gives me luck, otherwise, only misfortune. I remember using my powers to win a bike back at the preschool lottery, and then I broke all of my bones after being hit by a truck the next day. I used luck again to find some money in the street other day, and in the same day some piece of wood pierced my chest and almost made me bleed to death. How… Inconvenient. However, when an earthquake struck around my house and everybody was dying and everything was being destroyed, I survived it by just sleeping in my bed, where debris would fall everywhere except on it. This is what people would call a Godly grace… Yet it was just luck."

"…"

"The thing is, _being lucky_ is convenient, _being lucky_ is situational. Where is luck, there is also misfortune; where is blessing, there is also tragedy. This is why I usually don't make many friends, because being lucky can also translate as being unique or exclusive, and if something happens too many times to too many people, it becomes none of those. Or maybe, just like my father, I am just aloof to the world or something, hard to tell. I've never met him."

"…"

"But then again, what is misfortune, anyway? Breakup? Unemployment? Deforestation? War? Hunger? Poverty? Death? I have no idea about you, but for me, misfortune is… Your favorite mangaka going on hiatus with an unfinished work."

"…"

"You can always find a new love, you can always find a new job. Wars and deforestation can be stopped or avoided, and countries and nature might reform later with no problems. The hungry might be able to eat one day, the poor might be able to get rich one day, and if they don't, then there's no reason to fear death as an option. However, if one manga artist stops his works for whatever reason, then it's over for the series; no other artist would want to continue its story, and even if they do, the substitute will always be inferior to the original; even some artists tend to ruin their series in the long run like in Star Wars, Naruto, the Persona series and so on. Speaking of which, I also think it's a misfortune when a series that I like comes to an end. Doesn't matter the overall quality of the ending, I just want more of it, and it's such a misfortune knowing that I won't be getting anything anymore. Such a shame, really."

"…"

"How about you, Kiba? What do you think misfortune or luck are?"

I asked to the swordsman in front of me, who now stands tall and mighty alongside his other five dragon knights and with their signature swords at hand, while I stand here with Aslan on both my hands and feet, mask now covering my face as I finish my monologue and prepare myself for battle. What was the point of this whole exchange? Nothing in particular, I just wanted something to talk about while we fight, it's boring otherwise. Instead, he raises an eyebrow and clutches both his swords tightly.

"Even with human blood in your veins, you are surprisingly vain, Son of the watcher. Even as a spawn of a fallen angel, I feel your words and views as mostly… Disconcerting." He claims, looking around to try to find anything to carry the conversation on, and apparently fails as his eyes trace their way back to me. One second, two seconds of stares, and he opens a smile. He indeed has a pretty smile, typical playboy pretty boy. "But still, even so, I can still sense some traces of selflessness and life in your soul, and to claim that you feel nothing else but materialistic lust or greed would be an insult for the life that was given to you, regardless of your origins. In other words, no matter how much you talk, I can definitely say this: I love your soul, Kokuto Kurokami."

"Why, thank you. This is the nicest thing someone outside my family has ever said to me." I declare, and this is the purest truth I have to offer to him. Kiba or Orpheus, it doesn't matter since I can sense the genuineness of his words towards me, no sarcasm or pride coming from them, he really loves me in a way, and this is nice for a change, all things considered. Still, he face different sides in this whole conflict, so no matter how much he claims he loves me, I have no choice but to clash blades with him. He realizes this too, as he again raises his swords in conjunction with the rest of his dragon knights, and sighs.

"Unfortunately, our interests are at odd, and as such, I cannot let you pass to reach Lord Lucifer. For I am the one who defies death for love, yet what he is planning to unleash, it has my respect, I cannot allow you interfere." He says, raising his blade and aiming it at me. "I am sorry, Kokuto Kurokami. Your journey through the inferno ends with your clash against the Master of Strings. Even so, En Garde, Son of the Watcher! Show me the abilities that fuels your determination in stopping Lord Lucifer!"

"Gladly!" I say back, clashing my gauntlets together in order to let sparkles fly everywhere in defiance. With those last words traded, Kiba/Orpheus and his dragon knights all charged at me, swords at hand, ready for the incoming clash!

However, before we could even stay one feet closer to fight one another, Kiba and his knights suddenly jumped into the air and took distance from me, instead putting themselves up in the fake sky, and then landing on top of the houses which were surrounding us, holding their weapons with both hands and in a formation similar to a Sentai Show. I arched an eyebrow for that, whats with that now?

"Hey, Kiba! I thought we were going to fight for me to pass. Whats with that about? Is this some kind of joke?" I inquire him, pointing the finger of my gauntlet at him and his knights, who just chuckled at my attempt to threaten them. I know this is just a bluff from me, but it still hurts a bit. Instead, the leader knight puts his sword Gram up and holds it with one hand at the handle, and the other holding it… By the blade? He held his big sword by the blade, and some drips of blood came from his hand.

"No jest, only conflict in this garden, son of the watcher! This is how I, the Master of Strings, fight in this erratic world of war! Listen to my song of grief, and perish among the lyrics of melancholy!" He practically screams, as out of the sudden, out of pure of energy, from the blade several musical strings appear of fire. Now holding his sword Gram like a guitar, Kiba stomps his foot hard on the floor, and ascending in a show of fire, in front of him, a red, demonic microphone stand appeared, as his knights did the same, and instruments appeared on their hands or their swords morphed into them, all of them from sheer power and fire! I have several questions right now, but before any could be answered, he tapped the tip of his fingers on the microphone shaped like an inverse pentagram in front of him, and taking a deep breath, he practically screamed: "PEOPLE OF LIMBO! THOSE DENIED HEAVENS AND GRACE, MY PEERS, ARE YOU READY TO ROOOOOOOOOOOOOCK…?!"

And it didn't stop there: from the closed windows of the houses in limbo city, all of them suddenly burst open, revealing from inside shades of several historical figures and other people I don't recognize, all of them screaming and cheering like fangirls in a rock show! The pure blue sky turned black as night in a blink of an eye, and the fake sun shifted into a highlight which descended on a single stream of brightness onto Kiba, illuminating his whole form and his knights, which took positions behind him, and were readying their instruments! From a peaceful city, Limbo turned into an outdoor urban show! However, things took the turn for the worse once Kiba reached his slender fingers to the strings of his sword guitar, which demonic aura, even beforehand ever malicious, was practically oozing ill intent and hellish overtones! Vergil, who was still flying around, gasped at this sigh, which the only thing I could muster was…

"What in the actual f-…"

"THEN LET US ROCK!" He interrupted me with his final signal and hands in the air, making the crowd of shades and undead cheer even more. Out of the sudden, he summons a minimal-sized sword on his fingers, and starts to play the strings on his Gram sword/guitar thing. Out of the sudden, flames bursts from behind him and his knights, and cleaning his throat, he begins to sing in a hoarse, violent voice. " _Rock… Hard… **HALLELUJAH**! Rock… HARD… **HALLELUJAH**! ROCK… HARD… **HALLELUJAH**! ROCK… HARD… **HALLELUJAAAAAAAAH** ~…!"_

Wait, isn't that song from Lordi?

"Oh shit! Oh, fuck! You're in for it now, kid! When Orpheus gets serious, he pulls out the big guns, and with the body of that fag, I have no idea how you will deal with that!" The black raven named Vergil said in an urgent voice like a warning as Kiba would rock out with his knights/band, all while being cheered by the crowds of shades on the houses nearby. I am not a big fan of rock, but he has really good skills with that Sword-guitar, I'll give him that, I guess. As he continued to play that heavy metal with his own sick guitar and band, however, I started to get cold for some reason. Cold? How so? I didn't feel either heat or coldness ever since I came here, but now I feel… Cold… Colder… Freezing even!

"What the hell…" The sudden drop of temperature was too much for me, so I reached my hands to see any reaction, and truth to be told, I was trembling and my hands started to grow frostbites, making them numb. Even closer, I noticed that ice forming on my feet and holding me on the ground! I can't move from here! I'm stuck!

"Oh shit, now he got you there! Quick, get rid of the ice before he turns you into a family-sized popsicle!" I heard the bird say loud and clear, so without losing a second more, I smashed the growing icicles around my shoes with one of Aslan's gauntlets and stomped the rest with a greave-powered foot, opening a crater on the ground! Now ice stakes starts to ascend towards the sky into my direction, but before they could hit me, I used the power from Aslan to jump high in the air and pick Vergil by the claws, as he flew me around the arena where Kiba was still playing!

"Crap, that was close!" I screamed to myself as now ice stakes were throwing against me and Vergil, who was trying his best to dodge and avoid them at all cost! So Kiba has now a magical guitar that can make ice?! That's really cool, no pun intended, but this only worsens my whole shtick! "Is this some kind of magical music?! I knew music could do some really weird stuff, but don't tell me it can also create ice magic from them!"

"Nah, man! That so-called **Master of Strings** is not _that_ smart to create such complicated form of magic, at least from this caliber! Orpheus is using _thermoacoustic refrigeration_ to pull that shit!" The bird carrying me around retorted with a worried and shrieking voice, still doing some evading maneuvers in the empty sky while Kiba continued with his heavy metal song! Wait, did he just say ' _Thermoacoustic refrigeration'_? That makes even less sense than just ice magic! "Orpheus is using that guitar to make soundwaves so that they can create friction with the wind and so turn the sound into cold air and make those pesky ice weapons! Basically, he's not only a boombox but also a walking freezer! You better be careful or else he will turn you into a block of ice before you can blink!"

"Okay, I rather believe that he has ice magic than any of that crap you just said! Now, to exorcize him before this gets even weirder!" I muttered to myself after that nonsensical explication from the talking bird which was carrying me away from the undead rockstar below. Wandering my eyes around in order to search for it, I ended up finding it: the briefcase Mr. Shidou gave it to me filled with light weapons! And it is still intact from the ice! I need to get there and use them! I turned to my avian companion and signed for him. "Lord Vergil, father of the poets and the treasure of Greece, please land me this instant so I can pick my guns to battle such lyrical foe! I have confidence that I shall emerge victorious of this conflict, and if not, thr depths of hell await me!"

"S-Sure! Whatever! Just give me some time to rest because flapping my wings while carrying deadweight like you ain't nice, I tell ya that!" Those words of his actually hurt me, like a lot, because I'm trying my best to stay in shape and then he goes ahead and kicks me in the pride! No matter, complying to my wish, Lord Vergil let go of my hand and so I descended to the grounds below, more and more ice stakes going to my direction and with me trying my best to either dodge or flack them away from me with my gauntlets! "Win, lad! Win!"

"Yes, I know! Thanks for the words of encouragement!" I said back to the bird flying through the night sky, reaching closer and closer for the ground and for my trustworthy briefcase of magical light weapons! But the moment I thought I had this game won, the ice started to grow around it as well, encasing my weaponry in a thick, translucid layer of frozen air! Not only that, but more and more ice stakes grew from it and went all to my direction! And I didn't have time to even block or dodge those ones! So there was only one way out from this! "Okay, then how about this: **BLACK RIDER… _KICK_**!"

And without losing a beat, I pulled my legs up and aimed direction where the stakes and my briefcase were with a dropkick, the shine coming from my greaves and gauntlets going overdrive as my assaulting foot was covered in crimson flames and emitting a strange aura of destruction! In the end, breaking every piece of ice that dared to stand in our way and reaching for my weaponry, I clashed, I landed right on top of where my briefcase were supposed to be and destroyed the iceberg that had establish there, making glistering ice shards and concrete come off flying away from the ground and zero, and between them, my dear briefcase and all its inside weaponry! I reached for it and grabbed it by the handle, smashing its silvery case on the ground!

"Let's welcome hell, Kiba!" I said as I turned my attention to the rockstar undead on top of the buildings, who was still playing his **hard rock hallejuhah** with his band of drag knights! I look down now, and notice the increasing icicles reaching for me, from the ice stakes reaching for my vitals to the freezing layers trying to stick me to the ground! Well, this is not going to happen! I lifted one of my feet and lightly tapped the lock button of my briefcase. "Showtime!"

And as I said that, the lower part of the briefcase unlocked and fell to the ground, making a sonorous metallic ***CLANK!*** as it did, and since it was facing the opposite direction, I couldn't see what happened, but I could see, I could see a golden shine coming from inside the mallet. The golden shine grew and grew, emitting an aura of both ominousness and comfort while I hopelessly was being covered by ice and frozen air, as the band on top of the buildings suddenly lowered their instruments and song and started to stare at the bright unknown inside my weaponry holder. In the end, the light covered almost everything with its golden light, and with my arms crossed, I was hoping for the best! Indeed, it's Showtime!

"Uh, lad? What the hell are you…?"

 ***BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM…!***

And then light. Pure and bright light. Not a single dark spot as brightness consumed the whole place and left nothing unchecked. One, two, three seconds passed, and soon enough as fast as I could I kicked the briefcase shut, closing it completely and therefore the all-consuming light with it. The moment I did so, I looked forward and saw the aftermath of that little show of lights: The city was leveled into nothingness, the buildings and streets were reduced to ashes and more ashes, and the only thing that remained were the shades, the beach and Kiba and his drag knights, weapons at hand but all of them looking in awe at me, the sun returning to its usual bright self. Also, Vergil was still flying around but with an exasperated expression on his beak or something. I feel more at ease now with just us like that, in the middle of a deserted street not unlike some tropical beach instead of a costal city. I sighed, kicked the briefcase up and picked it again by the handle, the only thing I could say was…

" **Lucky~."**

"WHAT THE FUCK WAS THAT ALL ABOUT, LAD?!" And the black bird known as Vergil landed right next to me and shrieked in a voice that mixed both worry and anger. I simply shrugged that off and supported the briefcase on my back, as he started to beak my leg. "YOU JUST FUCKING NUKED THE ENTIRETY OF LIMBO CITY! WHAT THE HELL DO YOU CARRY IN THAT FUCKING BRIEFCASE OF YOURS?! YOU WALK AROUND WITH A PORTABLE NUCLEAR BOMB OR WHAT?!"

"Well, it ain't Marsellus Wallace's soul, that's for sure." I joked a little holding my briefcase for all the shades to see, only to shrug again. "Just kidding. While I was taking a look and inspecting this, I discovered that all members of the church carry one of those special briefcases for fights and alike. Turns out, besides holy weapons and light bullets, they also have a special command that makes them produce an explosion at least a billion times more destructive and powerful than a Tsar Bomba, which more or less makes them strong enough to wipe out the whole world in one use. For what I could read from the instruction manual of the case, it's only in case the church is about to lose all influence to the devils, fallen angels or other kinds of religions that is not catholic or something, and so wiping out humankind is one last suicidal attempt to assure victory or a draw. Apparently, it is still not strong enough to destroy inferno tower, though."

"Holy mama, the church guys have not been messing around even after hundreds of years, what the fuck!" The black bird concluded while taking flight once again away from me and around the place where the shades started to gather around me. Yep, desperate or not, every agent of the church has at least one doomsday device like that, and I'm so glad that I… ***CAHAM!*** , borrowed one from Mr. Shidou one year ago. Apparently, it only works on humans too, not even a hybrid like me felt the impact otherwise. Talk about a mass murder-suicide idea. Everybody here is indeed a bit cuckoo.

"But, you know what, I am glad it doesn't work on devils, shades or hybrids, apparently." I smirked to myself tossing the briefcase elsewhere and turning my attention to the stunned band of drag knights and my possessed classmate, who were too surprise to do anything else. I cracked my knuckles a few times, and summoned Aslan once more. "I just used so that I could clean out little arena for the real show. I am not such a coward to rely on such cheap tactics to win. I am pretty capricious, but not a loser."

"Clean… The arena?" Kiba murmured to himself, looking around to face his drag knights and then turn his face to me, confused.

"Exactly. I know you are not a fighter, Kiba, but a poet, and a musician. Just like you wouldn't invite a blind guy into a match game, or a legless person to a game of soccer, I won't allow myself to make you fight me in barbarian ways. As a fellow man of arts, Orpheus, Kiba, whatever you call yourself, I shall defeat you… In your own terms." I make a pose, finger in the air while my other hand on my hip, one foot in front of other, head slightly tilted. The other shades next to me gasped in their own ghastly existence, as Kiba wide his eyes in disbelief. For those eyes aiming at me, for all the incredibility of my actions, I could only smile, a smirk if you will. Is this madness, or is it pride? I don't care, for I am Kokuto Kurokami, and as always, luck will always side with me. Even here, even now, I believe in my own luck. "So draw your instruments, so-called master of strings. With my own talent and abilities, I shall bring your ruin and show you, the son of the watcher… No, the **NEW** demon lord of the Sixth Realm is someone you shouldn't mess with!"

"Alright… Very well, I accept your conditions, New demon lord of the sixth realm! Prepare to feel the power… OF THE REAL MASTER OF STRINGS!" And acquiring a new wave of confidence and power, the possessed Kiba jumped into the air alongside his drag-knights and out of nowehere, a sphere of light appeared right under his feet, which became brighter and brighter until it almost blinded us all! When we finally came to be, Kiba and his knights, still wielding their swords-turned-instruments, were now standing on some sort of flying platform shaped like a demonic skull on flames, horns made out of complete crimson rocks and with skeletal arms crossed and doing the symbol of the horns! Like a real rockstar, he picked the microphone yet again and screamed hoarsely on it. "CITIZENS OF LIMBO, ARE YOU READY TO ROOOOOOOOOCK~?!"

The shades shared stares at each other for a split second, but then all cheered, and Kiba, elated, started to play a few strings on his Gram guitar.

"OKAY THEN! THEN TIGHTEN UP YOUR BELTS, BECAUSE THIS TIME, WE SHALL PLAY…!" And then Kiba silenced the entire crowd, stopped for a second to take a deep breath and practically whispered on the micro. "… _Through the fire and flames_."

And the crowd cheered.

Without missing a beat, Kiba started to rock out a massive among of notes, the fire strings he was using on his sword now literally catching fire as the rest of his band of dragon knights were trying their best to accompany him! All the shades besides me were cheering and dancing to that shower of songs and guitar solos, as sweat and tears started to fall down Kiba's face, glossing his body in what looked like pure diamonds. He was not joking, he's really putting his soul and spirit into this song, and truly, it shows from the massive effort he's putting into it right now…

So impressed, so surprised, only after a while I noticed that something else besides light was descending from the skies where Kiba was playing. I look to besides me, and ignorant to anyone else, I notice flocks of flames dancing right next to me. Not just that, even more of those were showering the crowd from above, and so I turned myself to look upwards from where more and more leaves of fire were coming from, only to wide my eyes in pure horror and surprise: the skies, which were now colored in a deep crimson and golden, were filled with continent-sized meteorites and their debris, all ready to fall onto us, leaving no space for me to escape! Burning with the power of a thousand suns, those space rocks were close enough for me to feel their heat, and soon enough, feel their wrath. The crowd continued to cheer, while the Bird Vergil skewed away and landed right next to me, screaming for dear life, Kiba finishing his last strings of his song…

" _So far away we wait for the day; For the lives all so wasted and gone…; We feel the pain of a lifetime lost in a thousand days_ …!" And in the last strings of his performance, he shot his head upwards and finished with a headbang with the utmost love and spirit I've ever seen in a person, as the meteorites would pass right next to him with no harm, and the skeletal stage he set on to himself was now covered in flames and which the skull morphed to a dragons head. " _Through the Fire and the Flames **WE CARRY OOOOOOON** ~…!"_

"Aw, shit! Aw, fuck! You're in for it now, kiddo! Not even that faggot who called himself Dulio Gesualdo was enough to defeat that one, and he had a FUCKING Longinus!" Vergil screamed right next to me, almost bursting one of my eardrums. For that… I have almost nothing. I mean, to destroy an array of meteorites the size of a planet all ready to squash me in a few seconds? I guess I ended up miscalculating and underestimating Kiba's power or something. For my silence, the bird started to beak my head, all while screaming curses. "YOU FAGGOT! YOU ASSHOLE! _DEAL WITH HIS OWN GAME_ , YOU SAID, NOW LOOK WHAT HAPPENED! WE ARE GONNA BE TOAST BECAUSE OF YOUR FUCKING BIRDBRAIN OF A FALLEN ANGEL HEAD! NOW WHAT. MOTHERFUCKER?! NOW WHAAAAAAAAAAAATT…?!"

 ***GRAB!***

"You're! Not helping!" and I couldn't take it anymore: I need some time to think, but this flying black chicken is in the way, so I could only grab that annoying bird by the throat and toss it to a random direction to give me some space. With that out of the way, I should ask myself: what the hell am I supposed to do now?! Try to destroy all of those meteorites before they turn me into toast? Dodge and hide? Maybe ask politely if he can let me go? Nah, none of those ideas seem viable, since he was an asshole enough to take Kiba's body and stuff. Well, maybe I should just pray and wish something happen, maybe my luck will open a path or something… But those rocks are getting too close! Too close! I can't rely on my luck now! I have to…! I have to…!

 ***BAM!***

"…?!" And then whole crowd and even Kiba and his band stopped right on their tracts as I spread both my arms to opposite directions and made a pose, shaking my hips as the sun above us turned into a highlight on my figure, as I started to dance seductively. The crowd that went quiet during my sudden movements now started to accompany me! Yeah, that's the answer! I have to… Defeat him on his own game!

" _I must confess!; That my loneliness; is killing me noooow~…!_ " I started to sing with my best female falsetto, dancing the best I could to the original choreography and being followed by the shades of the those virtuous pagans, including Homer, Electra, Julius Caesar, Plato, Socrates and Aristoteles and King Saladin. Spreading aegles, crossing arms, spread it again, now shot it to the floor! Step, kick, hands on the hips and shake it! Arms up and pull, left and right, left and right and pelvic thrust! Just like that! " _Don't you know!; I still believe~…!"_

"What the hell..?" I heard Kiba said, but I have no time to pay attention to him, the meteorities are coming closer and closer! If I want to survive, I have to win, and so I continued as the rest of those historical figures continued to dance alongside me!

" _That you'd be here, and give me a siiiiiiiign~…!"_ Headbump forward and hand shakes to a side, head tilt, head bump again, hand shake again and head tilt, wing spread from the center, down around and them hands all over the body. And to finish it off: Chest thrust, hip thrust, heads down, turning body in a circle, and then hands up to the heavens! " _Hit me! Baby! One more TIME_!"

And as I finish my dance and the meteorites were about to crush me into a fine pavement pancake, from the finger pointing at the skies, there was a bright light that illuminated the whole place, but this time, it was a warm light, that consumed the entirety of limbo as silence took place…

…

…

"What… What happened…?"

"Isn't it obvious, Kiba? You **lost**." I said to the human-shaped husk of who was once a man, Yuuto Kiba, lying defeated and completed dried up from any previous light or life on the blank concrete of Limbo city, of what was once limbo city. The shades, now completely uninterested on us, were now only speaking to themselves on the improvised seats of Acheron beach, philosophizing and arguing like always. Yep, after that show of lights of mine, I shown him that my choreography and will were stronger, and as a result, I am completely fine, and the meteorites were gone completely. In response, Kiba only let out a small laugh between his dried lips…

"So… You figure it out… About my ability… How so… I wonder…" He asked as if just talking was the most painful thing in the world for him, and I could only sigh. **Audio-hypnosis** , this is his true and one ability: while the freezing air due to the friction with was real, the meteorites were just an illusion that he casted on me by numbing and confusing my senses using music and vibrations. That's why the shades didn't flee on sight, and this is how he was able to defeat Longinus-wielding foes: the shades have no body to vibrate and therefore fall for the illusions, and while it was all an illusion, those others before me still thought it was real and therefore make them real for them with no power to do anything about it because it wasnt real for anyone or anything but then. The mind… Certainly is a tricky thing to play with.

"Your songs and music comes from the heart and soul, Kiba, this is why the shades are able to hear them despite having no physical body. I must say… It touches my heart knowing that someone like you exist in this gild world, covered in gold, no soul. It is a pity that we became enemies this time. In any other time, I would have loved to hear more of your covers." I sigh to myself, and flash him a quick smile despite the fact that he won't be able to see it considering the empty sockets of were his eyes should be. Even so, after a quick gasp, Kiba smirked.

"You too… Have heart in your songs. To be able to fool even me, the master of strings… I was… Touched, and for that… I feel happy. After the death of my dear Eurydice… I thought I could no longer feel solace in music… But now… I feel in peace… Even in death…" He speaks. Suddenly, I can see coming from his chest a small orb of light, which them morphed into a small silver guitar pick. I turn back at Kiba, and noticed that little by little his body would dust away in the shadows. Even so, he was still smiling. "I am sorry for… Taking your friends body… Please… Take my soul and go forth… You have… My blessing… Kokuto… Kurokami…"

"Yeah." I said while seeing the body turn into dust and become one with the wind. So, Kiba is no more, and I can only play him a small pray as his body goes away. I am sorry for not being able to save you, Kiba, may you find peace in the afterlife. Don't worry, I will finish the job. I open my eyes, and reach for the guitar tick in front of me. Once it my hands, it turned into a massive, claymore-shaped guitar of red and black details with a golden skull encircled by a black disk as the body and skeletal hands as the handler. Not to mention, on the top of it, there was a revving engine. So, this is the soul of the master of strings. Neat. I reached for the strings and started to play a little, a little homage for Kiba and his cohorts who lost to Orpheus. Rest in peace. " _I look at you all; see the love there that's sleeping; while my guitar gently weeps…; I look at the floor and I see it needs sweeping; still my guitar gently weeps. I don't know why; nobody told you; how to unfold your love; I don't know how someone controlled you; they bought and sold you. I look at the world and I notice its turning; while my guitar gently weeps…_ "

And with that verse, I kick the floor one time, and out of nowhere, between the debris of the destruction from before, my briefcase of magical holy weapons ejected into my direction. I extended one hand, reached for it and caught it by the silver handle to then hold it by the end of my jacket. Not just that, I turn around when I sense some vibrations coming from the ground, and notice a small passage emerging from the center of where the plaza should be. In the end, I sense a shadow hover around me, and before I notice, the Vergil bird is up yet again, standing on top of the passage and scratching itself…

"Well, you did it, buddy. It took some guts and some fucking nappers for all the shit I shat, but you did it. You defeated that Orpheus dude, so sorry about your friend, though. It was bound to happen. Once Lucifer injects another soul into a body, only death can put their original soul to rest. So… Too bad." He spoke. I simply ignore it and follow my way to the second circle of hell, all while still trying to play the sick guitar that has become another one of my weapons. Master Vergil, for some reason, decides to tag along. "H-Hey, son of the watcher! I am coming with you! The last shmuck who got lost almost got killed by the big bad devil! If you want a tour around the Inferno, you better get a guide or else you will end up just like your friend from before!"

"Make yourself at home, master Vergil. Just… Try to stay out of the way. It can be quite messy." I warned him, yet the bird continued to follow me into the passage of rock leading downwards to the center of the world, while I continued to play my best with my new weapon… **Morgoth**.

As I continued to go down and down the rabbit hole, Master Vergil resting his claws on my shoulder, I finally reached a new place, away from Limbo city: instead of a calm and nice costal city, now I face a flat and green plain being punished with rain and strong winds, the willows and grass dancing accordingly to the tornados around, and I could hear screams coming from everywhere, yet I could only see shadows and a grand, imposing castle at the distance…

" _I look at you all; see the love there that's sleeping; while guitar gently weeps_ …" But I continued to play with my new guitar, finally getting a hang out of it, my fingers dancing across the strings to cut the sound of the rain and storms with soft notes and melancholic lyrics. " _I look at you… Still my guitar gently w-…_ "

 ***BAM!***

"Lad!" But before I could finish my song, I was struck dead-center by several lightning bolts coming from the heavens. Vergil tried to warm me, but it was too late. All of those showers of lightning and thunder came down on me in less than a second, and lifted an entire curtain of smoke where I should be. Flapping his wings while carrying my briefcase with his claws, Vergil frenectically called for me among the smoke, but once it cleared, he couldn't help but gasp. How could he not: coming clean from the smoke, here I was, completely intact, with my guitar at hands, a circle of destruction right around me, yet the floor below my feet intact! "But… Holy shit, but how?!"

"Simple, Master Vergil: _Lightning_ is not use against _rock_ -types, and I have **rock** for days!" I smirked to myself, playing some strings once more and ice and freezing winds took form right around me, only to dissipate in thin air once I stopped. So this is Morgoths ability, ice control! Neat! Once my demonstration was done, I summoned Morgoth back as a Guitar Pick and started to walk towards the castle at the distance, where light and lightning were being held. I think I already know who awaits me there! "That was a hell of an invitation gift, but guess what, I have an even bigger present just for you! I have the feeling this is a hell of a party you're holding for me, right…?!"

 **Uncle Baraqiel**?!


	24. Doggy style Hurricane

**And the journey of Kokuto through hell continues. This chapter might be on the shorter side, but I had fun writing it as it is, and all things considered, this is hell we are talking about, and in some romantic aspect, it makes sense for some chapters to be... A little shorter. But this is the circle of lust, so you know we might have so fun now! So I hope you have a nice read and leave a comment below. Love, Hellhound.**

 **Disclaimer: DxD belongs to its respective magazines and Ichiei Ishibumi.**

* * *

"Always remember that, Kid. In the hellish hurricanes of the second circle of Lust, the condemned always fly in duos. Close your eyes and ears for their suffering, as they are not here for a lack of reason. Lock your heart and move forward, ignore their pleas, and maintain a single target: the tower of desire. There, lies a place deeper than the second circle. Maintain your mind close, and go forth."

Vergil calls for me from my shoulder. The hurricanes of the second circle, the place where the lustful, which carnal desire conquered their reason, are condemned to be tossed around by the infernal vortexes for all eternity. No love, no lust, only pain and suffering, as lovers try to down to each other in vain, the turbulence that torments them until the day of judgement as a sick irony of the turbulence in their desires in life… Or something. For I should keep my thoughts in check and grounded, otherwise I will swept away by the moans of desire from the horndogs around me. I wonder if Hyoudou is around here somewhere…

To keep my mind at peace, in check and brief. I have no problems in keeping my lust in check, but I do feel a little bit of pity for those poor bastards who couldn't keep it In their pants. Keep them brief and calm, Kokuto, you know this. You have no friends to keep you in check or to talk too much, so that won't be a problem at all. I just need to focus and reach for the ominous tower in the distance that is sparkling dark lightning from the top onto the skies, causing even more winds to punish the lustful. A lightning I know from who is very well…

"By the way, boy… Rock-type Pokémon are not effective against lightning-type. Ground-type are."

Ah crap, and here I thought he could let that one pass just because the presentation was cool. C'mon, the one-liner was cool, so you could at least give me a pass, Vergil…

But anyway, with all that said and done, we continued our journey across the grassy fields leading to the Tower of desire, punished by the storms of the second circle and the screams of the damned. I saw so many figures around like the Arabian queen Semiramis, Dido, Cleopatra, the beautiful Helen of Troy, the wild Acchiles, the lovers Francesca de Polenta and Paolo Malatesta, but all of them were too busy being tossed around to even talk with me, such rudeness… Oh well.

Without that shower of lightning from before, I was able to reach the castle in the heart of the second circle, a construction reminiscent of a roman cathedral that was completed shaded in black and seemed very sturdy, with the exception of the pearly white gates, which were surprisingly light for their sheer size, almost the triple of my own height. I pushed those doors away and was again covered in light, which embraced me inside the building, taking me away from the punishing winds from the second circle…

Once I was conscious again, I found myself in a completely illuminated, almost immaculate corridor of pearly white walls and floor and a red carpet leading to the entrails of that building, a glassy ceiling showing the stormy darkness from the outside and some conmdemned or two hitting the glass onto to be tossed elsewhere in a comical fashion. The light that comes here doesn't even has a source, its like the marble itself is emitting a blank light. Oh well, this is the supernatural, it is only natural for it to have no explanation…

"Well, that was anticlimactically easy…" The bird in my shoulder commented while shaking his plumage to get rid of its wetness. "To cross the relentless whirlwinds of the second circle without a scratch, maybe that mongrel blood of yours is helping you quite a bit…"

"Not really…" I suggested back, opening the book Lord Shemhazai gave me and giving it a quick look from the words of my father Azazel. The explanation is right here, really. " _He who bends to himself a joy, Does the winged life destroy; But he who kisses the joy as it flies, Lives in eternity's sunrise_ ;… It is because I do not chain myself to lingering feelings such as lust or desire that weights me down against the windstorms of Lust, which affects only the wicked chained by carnal urges. Beauty, true beauty, and fulfillment are immaterial or incorporeal, thus, eternal. And as you can witness… I am beauty incarnate."

"Yeah sure, whatever King Oberon. Just keep going and we can reach the place leading to the heart before the Inferno tower kills us all!" The black bird then takes flight away from me, and I accordingly follow it to the center of the tower. "Follow me, boy! I know the way!"

The cold marble walls that reflected statues of gods and divinities and patrons of the chastity, the warm scarlet carpet decorated with quite imagery of love and purity, and the soothing, calm and warm feeling of happiness fills the corridor I am currently crossing, in total contrast with the chaos and insanity outside, which some shades would splat on the glass ceiling above, take a good look and cry before being dragged around by the winds. Talk about irony. God must have a really sick sense of humour for this kind of place to exist… but then again, as Vergil said, nobody here is innocent.

In the end, after a few steps further into this place, I reach for a new location into the tower of desire: another great circular plaza center which the red carpet led, a crystal giant chandelier above my head and right under it, in the center of the circular hall decorated with crimson mosaic arts, there was a shallow poll of crystal clean water, where I could see a body lying on it on its back, navel aiming at the ceiling while the body was completely paralleled with the floor. I took a quick look, and soon realized who it was…

"Uncle… Baraqiel…" I muttered to myself, looking at the imagery of one of the supposed leaders of the Fallen angels and apparently Himejima's father, Baraqiel, with his eyes closed, lying on the shallow pool of water that wasn't even an inch deep and wearing nothing but a blank loincloth to cover his shames, kiss-shaped nipple rings and earrings carrying each a Mars and Venus symbol, a necklace on his that would read the words Mega-slut. Suddenly, he opens his eyes wide, and levitates himself up from his lying position like a magician would, opening a smile at me. I flinch a little, sensing an aura coming from him. No, this ain't uncle Baraqiel, but it is someone I know. "No, you are not Baraqiel. You are…"

"Danny-boy, long time no see. Look at you, you haven't changed a bit…" The God of lust and intoxication who I haven't seen since last year, the serial rapist with the power over time and space, Bacchus, makes his return, now as a shade taking the body of one of the leaders of the Grigori. I snap my tongue a few times. "How many time has passed? Decades? Centuries? I can sense now, you have become quite a badass, haven't you?"

"It seems that you didn't change one bit either, Mr. Bacchus, which is a pity, really…" I lamented to myself. It looks like he got himself killed after all this time. I feel like crying a bit, he did say he was going to try to reform, but it seems that I was wrong a bit, but at least he didn't come back to Kuoh, so I can't complain, I can't complain at all. Vergil, who was flying around idly in the central hall, suddenly descended onto me and landed right on top of my head.

"Wait a minute, Kokuto! You know this shade?!" He asked, as I dropped my briefcase and picked from it the light pistol to hold onto myself, making the bird flinch and the take flight far away from me yet again. Unfortunately, I do.

"Unfortunately, I do." I said, turning my attention back to the semi-naked middle-aged man in front of me, which I can see has been having the time of his life in Baraqiel's body. I feel tears trailing down my eyes as I blink one eye at the time, still visualizing the sick grin forward. "So, you're here in the Inferno after all. I guess my efforts were meaningless…"

"Dear dear Daniel, the world doesn't change, all it does is turn. Same with people: they turn, they switch, they flip, they mold and form, but they never change." Bacchus says in the body of the fallen angel. I flip the trigger of my holy pistol a few times and turn back to him, weapon at hands, yet with no reason to pull the trigger. "You see, I did try to change, but in the end, I guess I was born to be a rapist. You wouldn't ask a paraplegic to stand up, or a blind people to read, or a Russian to write decent fanfictions. The same goes with me: I just cant help but to molest to suit my niche. I hope you are not heartless enough to call me a sick bastard, are you? Those were the last words before being sent here."

"I am not that cruel, Mr. Bacchus. But I am sorry to say this…" I said turning the gun not to his direction, finger on the trigger and barrel pointed at him, ready to fire. "… You will have to die again."

"Oh my dear inheritor, such tenacious of life and justice, you make me cry tears of romance for that." He really starts to tear up a bit, sniffing a few times, but in the end, he summons from the electricity from his hands two shining golden pistols made out of dark light, and turned them to me as well. "But unfortunately, Lord Lucifer does not permit anyone but the red dragon emperor to cross this place alive. This means I will have to kill you too. I could just zap you to death using the body of the fallen angel Baraqiel, the Divine Lightning… But to deprive myself from this high, to have a duel with such foe, would taint my reason to stay in the second circle of lust, don't you think?"

"You are the one talking, not me, old man…" I sneeze to myself, seeing that this man is really the lowest form of hedonist, but at the same time thanking that I wouldn't have to deal with the power of Lord Baraqiel again, since he would fry me on the spot, no doubt. So, a duel, eh? As a cowboy would say, _let's see who's the fastest draw in the west_ , or something. I can see he's also with a willing and itching finger on each of the triggers of his weapons, so I can't waver. Just like last time, he's in for the kill. Too bad for him, I am as well now.

"Win, boy! Win!" The fling bird screamed at me from the distance, and for all his trouble he was almost fried to yakitori from a lightning coming from the barrel from the weapon of Mr. Bacchus.

"How does it feel, Mr. Bacchus?" I snark at him, turning my attention to the shameless rapist on the body of a respected fallen angel, who arched an eyebrow at me, silently question my own. "To face the façade of death once again, to feel the life seeping away from your new body? It must really frightening, like watching the new episode of your favorite series not wanting your favorite character to die, or relaxing in a bathtub with the fear of falling asleep and drowning, right?"

"Huh, please, Dannyboy, death is like riding a bicycle: once you get into it, you never forget. And trust me, I was waiting my death ever since I started to commit my crimes. For justice in this world is flawed, but righteous… But now, in hell, which justice, mine or yours, shall prevail?" He replies back with a smile, but then it sours into a deathly glare, just as cold and violent as the hailstorm outside. The killing intent, is leaking from his being like a boiling egg. "Pinkass punk, don't you think you're better than me. I saw the devil once… Now, it's your turn."

"Bring it on, old man. It's not because you faced death once I will go easy on you." I stick my tongue out, putting the light pistol behind my head and sharping my eyes against him. "I just need one bullet to end it all."

"Tch, talk all you want, you won't be such a hotshot once I cook your brain from the inside like a soft-boiled egg. Ain't that romantic, Daniel? On the **signal** , we shot."

"Sounds fair. Better start writing your death haiku, Mr. Bacchus…"

"Arrogant little prick. You're going down!"

And so, it started…


	25. Last train to despair, fear and sorrow

**And the Inferno arc is reaching its first climax! Thanks for all those who accompanied this story until now, and I hope you all have a nice read! As always, leave your thoughts below and have a nice read.**

 **DISCLAIMER: Highschool DxD belongs to its respective magazines and Ichiei Ishibumi.**

* * *

"…"

"…"

…

…

…

…

…

…

…

…

…

…

…

…

…

…

…

…

…

…

…

…

…

…

 ***BANG!***

 ***TUM!***

…

"Looks like this is your end, Sir Bacchus." I said, pulling the gun in my possession down and blowing away the curtain of steam coming from the barrel, which just shot the decisive bullet from this showdown. In front of me, the pervert who has been taking control over Baraqiels body falls flat on his back, the two pistols which were pointing at me for less than a second now diverting paths to opposite directions while the body takes the crucified shot on the center of the saloon, a loud ***TUM!*** indicating his utter defeat. For that, I have only contempt and disgust. We could've avoided this, but someone had to continue being frisky with defenseless women.

"COUGH! Cough… I guess… This is really my end…" The man lying on the floor says between coughs of blood and choking words. He opens a smile of defeat, and tries but fails to stand up, only cocking his head down and forward before giving up and laying it again on the scarlet carpet, which was turning equally red due to his bleeding. "This is really… Cough, cough… The end for the God of intoxication… Bacchus… I guess… You think… This is pretty… F-Funny, don't you… Think?"

"What do I think?" I question him back, tossing the gun away back into my briefcase and picking the latter again, scratching the back of my head with one of its edges. After this one, I have no interest in staying here any longer, it's like my forces are being sucked away by the sheer darkness of this place. Yet, a bit of politeness won't kill me. Probably. "I think what you suffer here is no better what the likes of you suffer in the human world."

"All I ever wanted was to shed light on my life." He rethinks. "In this dull, boring world, of rules, of standards, folks like me… Folks like us… Cannot see to be comprehended. I thought you were different, Kurokami… But now I see… This is what it means… To be truly lonely…"

"You have no idea, Sir Bacchus. I am disappointed too. You are nothing but a sick maniac."

"I guess… It's time to close the curtains…"

"You don't deserve to die in style, Mr. Bacchus. I hope you can find some reason now that you are history."

And without a single moment of hesitation, not even a blink, I aim the weapon in my hand to the chandelier above. ***BANG!*** , the echo of the bullet violently ejecting the barrel of my pistol resonated throughout the entire saloon, and in less than a second I hear a metallic ***TINK!*** soon after. The massive piece of crystalized ornament struggled to stay up after a second or two after losing one of the rings holding it by the chain, but in the end it couldn't hold it much longer, and lost grasp from its support, falling from the ceiling up to the victim right under it: Bacchus, who let out a raspy chuckle…

Even in death, he didn't faulted, he didn't cry, he didn't mourn his own demise or dread it, Lord Bacchus only… Chuckled to himself, blood coming from his mouth as he faced the falling chandelier. In his last moments, he simply smiled, and spoke to himself…

"Life… Ah _life_ , wonderful indeed…"

 ***CRASH!***

"…" And that was the end of Lord Bacchus, as the crystalized chandelier above our heads came down to him and crushed his remains within Baraqiels body, leaving no traces of life except for the crimson blood that was now seeping from under the crystals and gold that built that ornament. So pieces of it flew around and lifted a curtain of smoke, but once that died down, there was only me, a crushed broken chandelier and a flying black bird, which was now hovering around us until it landed right on top of my shoulder. Vergil let out a small raspy gasp for air, and then laughed, while I remained silent for the entire arc…

"Gwahahahah! That was a close one, wasn't it, son of the Watcher?! For a moment I thought you were dead-on on the aim of that bastard shade, but it seems that luck is definitely on your side, ain't that right kid?! You are lucky indeed that shade was one of the lustful, because if it were to use its full power using that body, I say you would be history by now! Talk about a lucky shoooooot, amirite?!"

"…"

"Lad? Oi lad, are you okay?"

"…"

"Lad?"

"3.14… 15926535 8979323846 2643383279 5028841971 6939937510 5820974944 5923078164 0628620899 8628034825 3421170679 8214808651 3282306647 0938446095 5058223172 5359408128 4811174502 8410270193 8521105559 6446229489…"

"L-Lad, you are scaring me…"

"…5493038196 4428810975 6659334461 2847564823 3786783165 2712019091 4564856692 3460348610 4543266482 1339360726 0249141273 7245870066 0631558817 4881520920 9628292540 9171536436 7892590360 0113305305 4882046652 1384146951 9415116094 3305727036 5759591953 0921861173 8193261179 3105118548 0744623799 6274956735 1885752724 8912279381 8301194912 9833673362 4406566430 8602139494 6395224737 1907021798 6094370277 0539217176 2931767523 8467481846 7669405132 0005681271 4526356082 7785771342 7577896091 7363717872 1468440901 2249534301 4654958537 1050792279 6892589235 4201995611 2129021960 8640344181 5981362977 4771309960 5187072113 4999999837 2978049951 0597317328 1609631859 5024459455 3469083026 4252230825 3344685035 2619311881 7101000313 7838752886 5875332083 8142061717 7669147303 5982534904 2875546873 1159562864… Ah…"

"…?!"

"I missed this one. It was supposed to be 3, not 4… But I am all calm now, no need for that one." I sigh to myself, letting myself fall on my ass so I could let out a small but deep moan of exhaustion and look upwards, facing the transparent ceiling of the circle of lust and seeing the poor souls of the damned flying around restlessly in this stormy torment. I am calmer now, Yuki was right, reciting Pi for until I get lost in the numbers is a great way to hold myself together in case of a mental breakdown. Didn't expect to be able to recite until that order, though, maybe I am smarter than I give myself credit for. Oh well, I turn my attention to the bird flapping its wings right next to me. "I am sorry, Lord Vergil, the king of poets. It's just… This is my first time killing someone of my kin, and despite his previous sins, it still weighs heavily in my heart his demise by my hands. Maybe I have a softer soul than I expected, to mourn over the carcass of someone who was in the wrong, nonetheless corrupting the body of my dear uncle, Baraqiel. I feel like… Crying. Hooh~, I feel so much like crying… Just kidding."

"You are really a strange one, Lad. But it makes sense, you're in hell of all places, being here and have not gotten mad is quite a feat." The black crow comments in my current status, and for that I can nod in understanding, getting myself, dusting my clothes as Master Vergil takes flight once again. "That aside, now that we took care of that freak, I can guide you towards the lower levels of the Inferno from here, and if anything is how and where it should, we shall find the rest of your friends in the lower circles."

"Sigh, yes, whatever." I mumbled, not very excited to see what awaits me in the end of this journey through the world without light, but I can't let this low steam make me fault in my way towards my goal, the city of Dis, the place where the rebirth of the world shall take place. I clapped my hands a few times next to the fallen… Fallen angel and prayed for both his soul and Sir Bacchus's to rest in peace, although this is hell, so no rest for whoever trespasses here. I sniff, I clean my eyes from the tears that were streaming down from it, and took my way, following the black bird…

I walked and walked, following the trace drawn by the black talking crow above my head and the scarlet carpet under my feet, until I reached a dead end, a place where the marble and red would cease, and instead I face a tall, golden double door with a figure of a deformed half-man half-serpent king sculptured on its shiny surfaces, above it reading the name _Minos, the judge of the Dead_. Master Vergil lands right on top of my shoulder, scratches its own wings and pointed his onyx beak at the door.

"Behold, Son of the Watcher, for as we are in the presence of the judge of the dead, Minos. inside the entrance he examines sins, judges, and, as he girds himself, commits. I mean that when an ill-born soul appears before him, it confesses itself wholly; and thereupon that Connoisseur of sins perceives what place in Hell belongs to it, and girds him with his tail as many times, as are the grades he wishes it sent down." The bird bombastically declares, his wings and claws hamming around his verses with his utmost deepest tone. Despite such, I have no much interest in that old-looking statue, and just knock it a few times with the knots of my hand, and then nothing. Master Vergil then returns to his normal tone of voice. "Just enter and Minos will take you to the city of Dis. Since you are not an unalive or a devil, it might be a breeze for you to reach your destination."

"This is… Being so anticlimactically easy. What's the catch?" I turn my frown towards the bird, who could only whistle under his back, and I won't even comment on how possible that is. I mean, first I enter the Inferno tower without any cries of problems, and then I transverse both Limbo and the Lust circle in a breeze despite the emotional scars seeing Baraqiel naked might had in my psyche. Something must be up, maybe I am walking into a trap. Even for someone like me, having this stream of good luck can't be a coincidence. "I feel like this whole journey has been a bit too easy. I admit, I know how to deal with thinks like that, but even so…"

"Do not underestimate the forces of the Beings Above, young man. Divine power created this place, and so its gears and the fates of those who walk this world without light." The crow on my shoulder recites, almost whispering in my ear. "For you who is not yet an unlived, who carves his path towards the light despite your heritage and carrier of a righteous heart, this place is not for you. Don't be in a hurry to be judged, lad, as your time shall come, and new experiences shall present upon yourself and test your true nature. But as for now, walk forward your destination, and keep your head up."

"…"

"…?"

"Oh great, a bird is making me fluster, how will I explain this to my girlfriend once I get back?" I murmur to myself, turning my face away from the bird so he wouldn't see the blush on my face. To get a bird to make me feel ashamed and embarrassed, this is probably the second lowest moment of my life. Worst of all, if Yuki ever discovers this, I have the impression that she'll be having fried crow for dinner. That aside, I slap myself a few times on the face, and return myself to normal to face the damned bird. "That aside, Master Vergil, thanks for your compliments and praises, for I am very happy to hear them… Or whatever. But yet I must not waste time here, I literslly have a world to save… Mostly, just doing for my girlfriend and mother, but saving the world is also a sweet deal."

"Once again, you prove me that I can't categorize you in anyway. Just like your father, nothing but randomness and a mind that I can only describe as _insane_." The crow snarked at me and I shrug in response. This has become such a common stance through out this entire time since I discovered my heritage, I came to accept this as a part of me, just like my relation with Azazel and his race. I am half-fallen angel, and there is nothing wrong with that… For most of the time. I would be kinda sweeter if it didn't come with a bunch of goonies trying to take a piece out of me. With that out of the way, I face the door once again, and this time, pushed both gates forward, bracing myself for what might come later. Like an old relic, the gate creaked with the sheer force and age that it had, and once again I felt myself being covered in light, that blinded all of my senses, and embraced me with a warm, close hug, as it completely covered me…

And in another moment, here I am. Where is _here_ , you ask? Not even I know, bt it does resembles an old Victorian train station, but unlike the ones I have visited, this one is covered in total darkness and woe, dense, melancholic mist covering the whole place, and not a single soul to bless this place with its presence, only loneliness and despair from all sides. The golden gleam from before vanished within a blink of an eye, and now the shiny door that took me into this location now dies down until it becomes like clay, and the path before, the way towards lust, becomes endless darkness. I guess there is no turning back from here…

It didn't even take one minute full, through the rails of pure black and cold metal, a locomotive burning hot like the depths of hell itself, decorated with a skull with horns as a front and which wagons were shaped like ribcages, all colored in black and silver, with some shades already sitting there, lamenting for the eternal damnation that awaits them. Not just that, the skull had burning fire decorating the insides of its empty sockets, and wouldn't stop chanting a strange yet known verse…

" _Woe to you, ye souls depraved! ;Give up all hope of ever seeing Heaven! ; I come to take you to the other shore,; into eternal darkness, heat and cold.; And thou that yonder art, a living soul, withdraw thee from those fellows that are dead_ …"

"Eh, don't let Minos hinder our passage towards the city of Pain. If you have not sinned, I guess hell be okay in you having a ride on him. Come on, step it on…" Master Vergil declares, beaking my ear so I would board the infernal train to even deepest sorrow and woe. I snap my book once again, and read some passages around, letting my frown grow thicker and thicker. No matter how much I think about it, what is written by Azazel here is exactly as shown. Just how much did he know about this place? Enough to know what will happen if I don't hurry up, that much.

" _And their sun does never shine, and their fields are bleak and bare, And their ways are filled with thorns: It is eternal winter there_. So it is written…" I murmured to myself, closing the book and entering the wagons of despair and pain through the door and platform shaped like a skeletal hand. Once I stepped inside the place shaped like a ribcage, the skull-shaped from let out a whistle that sounded more like a wail of pain, black steam coming from the top of it as the hellish locomotive started to move, opening space for the deeper parts of the Inferno…

As we conducted our way towards the city of woe, I saw incredible things that I thought I would never: Endless planes of raining mud and hail punishing those stuck in the putrid mud, shades being crushed or rolled around by massive boulders that wouldn't stop moving or drowning them in gold, and the disgusting stink of a nauseating swamp which souls would conglomerate and fight each other across the rivers. From time to time, giant skeletal hands would sprout from the spine from the top of the locomotive and grab a handful of shades to toss them to one of the many circles of hell while claiming their respective sins. Master Vergil them would tell me about this is how Minos now judges and punishes the damned, and me, as a living, shouldn't fear him for now… But let's be honest, a giant hand tossing me around to one of the circles of hell is pretty scary stuff…

In the end, this was the last stop: Another train station, this one now open to the fetid skies of the Styx river, labeled as the Phlegyas station. After that, nothing else, but King Minos, the locomotive from hell, claiming this is the last stop, and that I must walk on foot now. Taking a quick glance at Master Vergil, I pick my stuff and left the devil train to now trail backwards, back to the bowels of hell that it came from, leaving me alone with the black crow…

"We are getting closer, lad. I don't know what your business is with whoever is making the calls, but for this fella to be able to summon the Inferno tower to the human world, he must have some deadlines to attend, even deadlier than yours." The crow coughed on my shoulder, and I could only nod in agreement. Because, away from my sight, right where the skies and the horizon meet, I can see, in total contrast with the rest of the volcanic dark skies, a tall, almost divine construction that resembled a wall made out of diamonds and marble, shining bright like the sun and covering the entire place in an almost-divine light. However, even from here at the distance, I can sense it, the utter, despicable aura that it is emanating, worse than that, a sense of dread I didn't feel in a while for now. I guess this is what people call a call from death. "Lord Lucifer is just around the corner now. Are you ready for that?"

"Even if I am not, I would be facing him one hour or another. Let's get this over with, I have school tomorrow." I lamented to myself, taking my way towards the so-called city of woe and into my own destiny. I am Kokuto Kurokami, the one who always has luck by his side, and I won't falter, even against all odds. If I doubt myself, even for a second, then everything shall be for nothing, so I have to keep my head up and confront this atrocity, whatever the ways. I… I can only thing I can do to honour the one I should call my father, the leader of the Watchers, Azazel. Looking into that direction, I could only wonder, however. "But this wall seems to impenetrable. I wonder what I should do to get insid-…"

"GYAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHH…!"

 ***CRASH!***

"Wha~…?" And before I could even finish my sentence, there was a tremor not unlike a true earthquake that shook the entirety of the Inferno, and from the walls of marble and diamonds shielding the city of Dis, a thunderous sound echoed throughout the place. Not a second later, and a part of the walls started to crack, and in another loud crush, a part of it was completely shattered to pieces, flying pearly debris going everywhere and smashing against the ground like true meteorites. However, the most important yet confusing part of this whole ordeal was a small, crimson glimpse among the debris: a young man of brown hair in a ridiculous cut, wearing a crimson and black dragonic armor and being accompanied by an equally gigantic crimson dragon, both of them seemingly being damage to a high degree. I take a closer look because I couldn't believe my eyes, but after focusing my vision forward, I had no doubt about it, I know that person: "Wait, ain't that… Hyoudou?"

And then that crimson sparkle flew a few more miles before clashing onto a part of the Inferno, lifting a mushroom of dirty and fire in its wake. Are my eyes playing a prank on me? Is Hyoudou, of all people, here in the Inferno, wearing a dragonic armor for whatever reason?

…

Eh, whatever, I still have a settle to score with this Lucifer fellow…

At least now I have a passage to the City of Dis…


	26. Albus Rex

**And we reach for the partial climax of this arc! Not the conclusion, of course, but i guess you can start digging a little deeper into the lore of this arc and what is happening so far. I actually had more fun writing this chapter since I could practical vomit shakespeare from all the sides and still have a good time doing it, so I hope that, whoever reached so far in this story, has my everlasting thanks and can get all the little references hidden around. They are never subtle, but I hope I have done a good job! Also, title drop this chapter! I always wanted to do that!**

 **DISCLAIMER: DxD belongs to Ichiei Ishibumi and its respective magazines. All the other OCs however belong to me. Dont forget to R &R and have a lovely day.**

* * *

"Hey, big guy. How it's been? I guess I'm the next on line, right?"

After a minute or so of walking, I now find myself into the then-impenetrable walls of the city of the Damned, Dis, the huge crack on the wall the guy who resembles Hyoudou serving as a nice door for it. I jump inside the diamond marbled walls and give myself a nice view from the inside: Instead of the doom and gloom scenario from the previous circles and the entrance, the room that I here stand now is an immaculate place with marbled circular floor with the signal of a dark actogram star on the center of it, surrounded by the white images of skulls, demons and angels, pillars from the borders extending all the way to the ceiling, which had imagery of a distance space, galaxies and stars merging together to make a beautiful painting, or rather, that might be the actual space since they were moving. In this place, which was large enough as a soccer field, the most important setpiece of it however was the figure that was by the other side of me:

Sitting on a throne shaped like a head of a dragon, with several tubes of fluorescent blue liquid attached to its back and covered in skulls and skeletal armor with a dark crown on its head, there was an armored figure clad in dragonic guard, practically chained to its sitting and looking back at me with glowing hazel eyes behind its dragonic helmet and dark crown, another mosaic octagram with eight colors **(Red, gold, purple, blue, white, silver, silver, hazel and orange)** hovering behind it like a halo, illuminating the rest of the already immaculate room. The throne that it was sitting on, just as immaculate and white as it, was covered and surrounded by skulls, skeletons and other war gears, such as armor, shields, weapons and rosaries, indicating that lad that resembled Hyoudou might not be the first to fall against it. From its sitting, the dragonic king of the underworld was supporting its own head with a fist while propping the rest of its hand on the armrest, which was shaped like a human spine, giving off a bored vibe. So, this is the true devil king of the Underworld, the white dragon emperor according to Azazel's book and now the herald of the destruction… **Vali Lucifer**.

"It seems that I came a little late for the party, eh? Skulls everywhere, the stench of death, and I think those red stains on the walls are not just for the sake of decoration, right?" I joked around, entering the domains of the demon king with Master Vergil by my shoulder. The moment I found myself in the middle of the room and on top of the crystalized octagram mosaic on the floor, I sensed a little quake shaking the whole place, and turning around, I noticed that the crack on the walls circling the city of the damned was being reconstructed for no apparent reason, closing the damage and recollecting every cranny, every particle of the wall until it looked that it was never broken in the first place. Just like Azazel wrote, Divine power has constructed the very fabric of this place, and eternal it must remain…

"Who… Enters… In my… Lair of… Pain…?" My attention shifts back at the royal-looking dragon armor by the other end of the room, who spoke in a booming, grave voice that was deep as the hell we're currently standing on. My entire being was shaken by both the volume and aura of his voice, so dark and full of malice I could feel my skin freezing. Even so, I turned my attention to it and formed a smile on my lips, trying to stay cool in such adversity.

"Who am I? Well of course, I am your prom date." I said with a mocking grin and also doing a mocking bow to it, extending one hand for the creature while politely posing in front of it. "Shall we dance under this beautiful sky, milady~?"

"You… Dare… Mock… Me?" The booming voice, despite not letting go of its bored, stoic tone, came carrying even so more weight than its previous state, also packed with a lot more force that made the entire construction around us shake and tremble against it, me being no different, almost losing my footing. I saw a glimpse of two orbs now facing me with furious anger and hatred. I return to my normal posture and cracked my neck a few times. As it slouched back into its sitting. "Begone… Son… Of the… Watcher… You… Don't… Belong… In here. "

"Me? To not belong here? I think you got things all mixed up." I shrugged with certain smug, as the sitting beast hummed in curiosity back at me. "So, Vali Lucifer, eh? The white dragon emperor and descendant of the devil himself. You are the one who doesn't belong here, monster. So begone, you!"

"It… Was… Not… By… My… Hand… That… I… am… Once… Again… arisen… From… The ashes… Of… Time…" It mumbled under his breath, a vapor of hot air exhaling from its covered jagged mouth every time it spoke. "I… Was… Called… Here… By… Higher… Forces… Who… Wish… To… Bring… Salvation… To… This… World…"

" _Salvation_? Now that's a pretty word I wouldn't expect someone like you to say." I pointed an accusatory finger at him. "Where is this salvation, anyway? You steal people's souls, put the souls of the damned in their bodies, and make them your slaves."

"Perhaps… The… Same… Could be… Said… Of… All… Religions…" He mumbled back, letting out a tired, yet comteptous sigh. In response, I crossed my hands together and summoned Morgoth yet again.

"As expected, your words are as empty as your soul." I said, sticking Morgoth's axe on the immaculate floor above the octagram star and revving its handle like a motorbike would, making smoke and fire come out of the strings. "The world ill needs a so-called _Savior_ such as you!"

"What is… The world? A… Miserable… Insignificant… Pile… Of flesh… And secrets…" And from his free hand, the entity known beforehand known as Vali Lucifer began to extend his hand for me and open his palm on my direction, in which I could see the mark of an inverted pentagram on it. Suddenly, a large, human-sized crystal appeared from it, bulges growing all around it that make it look like some sort of rock candy. From crimson, the crystal then started to glow until it adopted a more purple tone, coincidentally the same shade the octagram halo behind it started to take. I hear a grunt coming from the dragon helmet, and the shine from inside of it grew tenfold. "But… Enough… Talk. HAVE… AT… YOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOUUU…!"

"Lad!"

 ***BAAAAAAM!***

"HuUuuUuUUUuuuuh…?" And fast as only its truly, a shower of lightning came from the now-azure crystal in Vali's possession, practically obscuring everything else in the impeccable white room and producing an thunderous sound that shook the very foundations of the tower. However, as always, I was faster, and caught up with Master Vergil's talons to fly away from danger, from the spot all the sparks and thunder landed!

"You missed!" I mocked him from the highs, jumping off my avian master and landing on my feet a few meters away from the ground zero, which didn't lose any of its previous white splendor, and turned my axe-guitar-sword thing to him, with all the intentions to use it. "I hate to sound cliché, and I am not doing anything him for the sake of the world, or to gain any fame from people I hardly know, but listen well… I shall stop you, titan clad in white. So _little wanderer, hie thee home_."

"You… Shall… Suffer… Despair… And then… Die. For you… Have… Stepped… In the… Domain… Of the… One… True… Devil King!" He proclaimed, now the crystal and the octagram halo behind him turning into a hazel tone as he snaps his fingers and several, thousands of light-element spears are summoned, all of them turned to me! He lifts one of his hands, and waves it against me, in which signal made the spears turn unquiet! "Fire!"

"Too slow! Blast riff!" I said as the several stakes of light were shot against me simultaneously at extremely high speed! Before any of them could even reach me, I picked Morgoth up once again, revved the handle as the axe would exhale flames and lightning, and passed my hand all the way through the strings, making a sick riff with it! The beat wasn't just musical, of course! Because from the demonic guitar, a very-physical dome of energy emerged and repelled all the light spears that were thrown against me! Some of them were able to break it, but weren't close enough to even hit me! Vali let out a surprised hum, while I could muster at this moment was a false grin of confidence. That was a close one, one moment less and he would've killed me. Even so, I continued to smile. "Vali… Demon Lord… Whatever you call yourself, I am not a typical light novel protagonist or a comic book hero. All things considered, you should not underestimate me, for I am human as well."

"Insignificant… Eyesore… You are… Nothing but… Weak… And pathetic…" He growls, again snapping his finger for the crystal in front of him and his halo change shapes yet again, now becoming crystal clear, almost like a true diamond. "Who are you… In the face… Of fate? Dread me… Fear me… Despair… For I am… Inevitable… The Omega… The end… I am…"

"… A huge pain in my arse! I have school tomorrow and a date at Saturday, so please, with all due respect and no intention to denigrate you or the entirety of your race, go to hell!" I cut him mid-sentence, revving Morgoth once again until it was completely covered in flames and running to his direction! From him, nothing except another monotonous, almost-bored growl, as I picked up the pace and held Morgoth upwards like a sword, jumping on his direction and descending the axe of my guitar onto him! "SO HAVE AT THEE…!"

"Futile." He groans back, extending his hand once again as the halo and the crystal now took a golden color as I was about to smash Morgoth against his ugly face! However, the moment the attack would connect, an equally golden aura surrounded him like a shield, and ***BAM**!*, I hit it without leaving a scratch on his body! Vali snaps his fingers, and so the ethereal shield around him expanded, tossing me away and making me fall, rolling around until I landed on my ass! So, he has shields now, huh? This is getting complicated. I stand on my two feet yet again with Morgoth to support me, revving it yet again to catch some more steam. "You can't… Destroy fate… Child. Only… Wait. For it is… The end."

"Fate, huh? But you don't know who I am, lord Vali…" I said with a defiant grin, despite the fact that I am almost shaking with this whole ordeal. Ah crap, I just wanna go home and play video-games, why does my father have to be a fallen angel? This sucks. But… This is the least I can do for him. I turn my attentions to the king by the other side, also picking the book I got from Lord Shemhazai and taking a quick read through it. No doubt about it… This is it. Or at least, it was supposed to. But even so, I won't give up that easily. " Did you know, Lord Vali, that when you spell _Luck_ with _Life_ , you get _fate_? For what it is, for who I am… I am the master of my own luck… And my own fate!"

"Petulant… Child. You… Need... Some… Manners. Jin…" He snaps his fingers while the crystal turned dull yet again, but from the side of his throne a black katana appeared and cut through the air until it stuck on the ground right in front of me. In that same moment, a large, ferocious dog of black fur and red eyes appeared right there, and charged against me with his large, dark teeth! "Rip him… Apart… [ **CANIS LYKAON** ]!"

 ***GROWL!***

"Whoa! Easy there, Pochi!" I said in a panic. I didn't even think, I just moved Morgoth right in front of me and let the dog bite the guitar with his sharp canines! That was a close one, but once it could put its back paws on the ground, several, innumerous dark blades started to emerge from the ground, all of them coming to my direction! "Now that's just unfair…!"

 ***STAB! STAB! STAB! STAB! STAB!***

"Crap, it stings!" I moaned in pain as those sharp, cutting blades practically stabbed me away, pushing me to the limits of the arena and making me clash against the wall, making me fall and hit the floor yet again! I take a deep breath, and look at my clothes with a grunt. Oh man, I just bought those! Plus the fact that I have to buy vinegar to get rid of the bloodstains before mom comes back home or something. This day just keeps getting worse…

"Lad, are you alright?!" And Master Vergil just comes by from flying through the arena to land right next to me, poking me with his wings and letting himself discover that I wasn't actually dead. Once I lifted my head to sign that, yes, I am still alive somehow, he made a face and poked me with his beak. "Look, I don't care who your father is or how he knows your name, but listen carefully: that thing he just summoned is a Sacred Gear, and a very powerful one at that! If you mess up, then goodbye our partnership!"

"Pretty self-evident, thank you very much." I coughed to get rid of the bad taste left in my mouth, which was actually blood, using Morgoth to help me stand up and dust myself from the dirt of the floor, actually to just put myself together. I couldn't even blink and that damn dog attacks me once again, this time charging and then trying to tackle me with its fur filled with deadly shadowy spikes! I used my guitar once again to shield my body against the assault, only to once again be tossed against a wall, Master Vergil against landing next to me to see that, yes, I am still alive.

"Doesn't that feel like a picnic? Brute force won't work on him since he has become way more powerful now! If the heavenly dragons are a 100 and the super Satans are around 90, this guy is a Zetta! Use your head instead, kiddo!" I hope he knows that whatever he's babbling about makes no sense to me since I have no idea how power those Heavenly dragons on Azazel's notes are and what a Super Devil is, but if we're talking about measures here, then I have to go for that route and assume he's as strong as he looks. Master Vergil takes flight once again, circling the entire arena. "I will be here trying to figure it out how you can beat Vali and give some help from his attacks! You be trying to stay alive, alright?"

"How about you get down here and give me some direct help, Master Vergil? You are the treasure of Rome, after all?" I inquire him yet again, and his response is a scoff and a laughful shriek as if I just said the dumbest yet funniest joke ever.

"Hell no, fag. Help yourself, cuz I ain't getting closer to the King that can trash me like a sack of potatoes. Good luck." He flapped his wings like he's giving me a thumbs up, and that's all that I needed to know he won't be any help further. Great, just great…

"So much for the great poet…" I deadpanned as he flew away from even my hearing range, but whatever, I am Kokuto Kurokami, the man who always has luck by his side, I can do this, I can do this… Probably. I better change strategies, and so I pick Morgoth back and morphed it back to the hairclip to put it between my locks while taking my ring to morph it into a demonic nunchaku with lightning on it. Crimson King, of course. I turn to the ravenous dog in front of me, who was ready to charge once again. "Come on, doggy. Let's dance under the pale moonlight…"

The beast said nothing, only growled once again and charged with its fur filled with sharp blades! So fast, so violent, all I could see was a black and silver blur rolling towards me in high speed, but I could not falter or else its over! I sharpen my senses and eyes and in a smooth move and do a WOOTAH! attack, the handle covered with electricity clashing against the raging canine as the whole place turns on in sparkles! However, the moment the clash happens, the strings of lightning suddenly run all around the dog and electrify it completely, making it lose balance and fall to the ground behind me like a broken airplane, all the way whining miserably! Yeah, take that you stupid dog, you're just a stupid mutt waiting to become Chinese hamburger!

"Good, I am getting my footing on. Man, it feels like I'm playing Pokémon all over again…" I cursed to myself, shaking the chucks left and right and doing some Bruce Lee-noises as lightning would crash here and there. So, this Canis Lykaon is weak to lightning, that's a nice hint. I turn back to the dog, which was again struggling with the electricity running through its furry blades, and made some more WOOTAH!s and HIYAH!s with the nunchakus before holding one staff under my arm and doing a pose. "Come on, little mutt _. I am sir Oracle, and when I ope my lips, let no dog bark_."

The dog ironically barked at me, twitched a bit more due to the electricity, and pulled itself up in order to prepare a roar beyond anything I could imagine. The black dog let out a guttural roar, savage and loud as itself so much it trembled the walls yet again, and from near it, several, innumerable black blades started to sprout from the ground, all of them aiming at me! They are everywhere as well, from my back, to my front, to my sides, leaving no room to escape or any attempts to fight back, I am completely trapped in the forest of swords!

However, as if I am letting that stop me! Before any of those blades could even think of cutting me, I swing my nunchaku of pure electric energy left and right, doing some WOOTAH!s, some more HAIYAAAH!s and even more WAOH!s and making the staffs practically blur with such movement and speed! Not just that, the motion back and forth showered my surroundings in electric power and sparkles, until there was a dome of pure energy around me! In the end, I ended with a HOWAAH! and the electric current that was I charging dispersed around me and ran throughout the black blades in my vicinity!

 ***ZING! ZING! ZING!*** , I saw the purple lightning crossing from blade to blade like a snake trespassing and crossing around vines and tree branches until all of them gathered around and zapped the source of all of them, the black dog, in a show of lights and electricity! The dog didn't just whined, but practically screamed from being electrocuted, making all the shadowy swords return to itself, which was still twitching and screaming for all the power contained within! Not yet, I am not finished yet! I extended the lightning nunchakus until it was possible with its lightning chains and reached the dog with it in a swing, slamming it with the lightning staff and spreading electricity even more! So strong, the black wolf came up flying right into my vicinity! Time for the coup de grace!

" _A dog starved at his master's gate_ …" I extended now the nunchaku forward towards the dog in midair, and then, in another second, the staff suddenly turned into a flaming blade of a spear which pierced the dog's hard skin like butter and then bursting it into flames! The dog whined and screamed in my grasps, trying but failing to produce blades through its body and instead would grow small swords from it like tumours! This is it! This is the end! I turned back at Lord Vali, and in one smooth, violent swing, I bring down the dog to his direction, covered in sparkles and flames! "… _Predicts the ruin of the state_!"

The white dragon King could only extend his arm and turn its palm against the upcoming projectile shaped like a flaming sparkling dog, and then BOOM!, the black dog was no more as it violently exploded in a show of light and flames like a firework during summer vacation! With it, the explosion brought a curtain of black smoke to blind our vision for a second, but the moment it cleaned up, I could see now the extend of my attack and the damage it caused: none, not even a scratch, since the crystal and the halo were again emitting a bright shade of golden and summoning a golden translucid shield shaped like a cross in front of it. No scratch or damage, just that same bored aura around it as a black broken katana falls to the ground and shatters completely. One, two seconds pass, and Vali looks down to the blade, and then back to me. No emotion, no feelings, only silence, but then…

" _Tobio_ …"

"Who…?"

 ***BAM! BAM!***

"Look out, kid! Those Senjutsu blasts will fuck you up if they hit!" And I snap back to reality as Master Vergil warns me about Vali's next attack: with the crystal and halo now shining bright white, he summons from them mandala-like runes right in front of me, and from them, I see wheels of while fire coming to my direction! I lose no time and slashed the air with the spear mode of Crimson King, creating slashes of fire and flames against the white flaming wheels! They collided… and my flames passed right through them like they weren't even there! I had to jump away from the way in order to avoid them, and they were still in pursuit! "Physical attacks do shit against Senjutsu, lad! Your flaming spear won't be able to subdue an attack of this caliber!"

"Oh yeah? Then… How about this?!" I summon Crimson King back to its ring form and pull the rose in my hair to morph it back to Luvah, the white spear! If I can't fight back, might as well defend myself: I stick the end of the scythe on the ground, and from it, it created a myriad of white flowers and tree branches, which formed a dome shield all around me, this time clashing against the wheels of fire in another show of lights! In the end, all the flowers and trees that I created withered and died the moment they clashed against those senjutsu attacks, whatever those are. I was now surrounded by dead trees and flowers, but safe and sound. I let out a sigh of relief, turning my eyes back to Vali, who was humming in curiosity and the crystal turning back blank.

"Man, what's up with this guy? Not only he got his hands onto two Longinus Sacred Gears, but has light element, holy lightning and senjutsu, now that's just cheating, yo!" Master Vergil lands again onto my shoulder and sharing some knowledge with yours truly as the white king in front of us grunts again, apparently content in just staring. I see, so he doesn't really see me as a threat so far. "Uuuuh, this a complicated one. I have never seen a being such a varied types of patterns and attacks, not to mention… He seems to be able not to just use his own demonic power, but the weapons of his defeated foes… Indeed a being worthy of the title of a _Demon King_. But even so… He wouldn't be able to do so much… Unless…"

"I have no idea how this world works at all, or how being a Demon King makes you this strong, but I'm picking up from where you're coming from: that mishmash of powers and abilities is not supposed to be normal, at all." I came with that conclusion, cracking my neck a few times to regain my composure a little. "So either he picked that ability from his Sacred Gear and is somehow channeling their souls into him or…"

"Or…?" Master Vergil inquired with a worried and nervous tone.

"… Or he's a very bad-written DxD fanfiction OC."

" _BOY, THIS IS SERIOUS, FOR FUCKS SAKE_!"

"Just kidding…" I nonchalantly said. I know this is of bad taste, but I had to take some tension from my shoulders, or else what awaits me is a shallow grave as demonic dust. I turn my attention to my foe, and smiled. "But you did notice, right master Vergil? That crystal of his, as beautiful as it is, cannot be just for decoration? Did you notice? Every time it casts something, the color changes."

"It does make sense, lad. Devils are so arrogant that a weak point as obvious as that might be the answer for our troubles." In a calmer voice, Master Vergil observed, taking also a glance at our enemy at hand and furrowing his crimson eyes. Suddenly, he let out a gasp of surprise and horror, poking me with his beak my ear once again. "Lad, lad, what the fuck lad. That is no ordinary demon crystal, nor is some form of magic transmutation, nuh-uh. That… Thing, is a disgusting crystallization of a clusterfuck of eight individual souls mashed together. Vali Lucifer, the Demon King, just mashed together the soul of eight poor bastards and is now using the crystallization of such to channel their powers from it…"

"So are you telling me that damn crystal is some form of a Philosopher's stone? Neat, also, ugh." Was my only reaction towards it. I mean, I know that Vali can rip off someone's soul and put it in other body like some kind of shamanic turkey stuffer(which reminds me, I am kinda hungry after all of that), but to extend this ability in creating a massive crystal and use it as a rune itself? This might… Be really treoublesome. But then, I couldn't help but smile, as I kicked my briefcase open and from it picked a light pistol, pointing now towards the floating crystal. "But that also means… If I destroy that pesky crystal of his, he can kiss his little abilities _goodbye_ , and then I'll be at least able to kick his face."

"Lad… No." He bird talked back in surprise and sorrow, making me turn to it, confused. "That crystal is not like a body that holds the soul, nor is some container like a Sacred Gear. It's a physical, very real manifestation of not just one, two or even three, but **eight souls** merged together in a hellish chimera, and for them to have a sense of self… It means they _are aware_ of all of what is happening to them, even in this instant. To destroy that crystal… Means to completely destroy their existence. No heaven, nor hell, only the nothingness."

"…" I gulp hard. That… Makes sense… Makes too much sense…

…

…

…

 ***BANG!***

 ***TINK!***

"LAD…!"

"Tch, harder than I thought it would be." I snapped my tongue in a cheeky way, seeing the light bullet hitting but then being deflected by the blank crystal around Vali Lucifer, who could only lightly chuckle at my attempt.

Yeah, whatever. Like I said, I am not sentimental, I am not a murderer, but if something or someone is in the way of my peaceful life, it shall be eradicated without questions. My prayers go to the fallen who have been killed by this monster and all the souls that compose that crystal, but I won't let that happen here and now, and if I want to stop it, I have to destroy Vali Lucifer, the white dragon, before the red one comes here and reduces all the efforts thus far to naught. I feel… A bit better thinking such.

"I am sorry, Master Vergil, but this is my decision: If I am to stop the Demon lord from destroying the world, I have to sacrifice those eight souls so I can reach him. Plus… It's their fault for being weak and losing their soul to Lord Vali. They lost their rights to complain the moment they subjected themselves to such humiliation. Just kidding…." I explained to the Bird Master on my shoulder, who again took flight and started to circle the room with an exasperated muttering. Like I said, I am not a sentimental person, but am I not heartless either. I will put their souls to rest from this infinite circle of hatred and pain, and be the herald that nothing they did was in vain.

"Good shit for you then, Lad! You're the one who will get the PTSDs from this whole ordeal… But it's not like a fallen angel hybrid like you would feel bad for anything, amirite? Burst his ass, boy!" He declared while I put the gun back at my briefcase and kick it shut once again. I need more power now. "Of course, if you think you have any chance against the demon Lord, you will need a lot more power to destroy that crystal…"

"I figured that much. Oh well, I think it's a good time to pull out… _That_." I said with a smirk on my face as I reached for my front pocket with one of my hands and started to walk towards Vali Lucifer, who did nothing in those small seconds, only looking at me with morbid curiosity. I need more firepower to destroy that cluster of souls protecting him, right? Right, so I just need to pull my trump card then…

Turns out, physics can be applied even to supernatural events: Back last year, during my unfortunate events regarding a certain fox spirit, a crazy jingoistic priest and a perverted fallen angel, I got acquaintance to one of Japan's most feared objects, the killing stone of Tamamo-no-Mae, a cursed rock made from the flesh of the evil fox spirit and distributed around the five great families of whatever. I got one of those due to a small… Business I had with Lady Tamamo, and used to bring forth her physical form, which would go on to cause troublr to the supernatural section of Japan, but fortunately away as possible from Kuoh town. But turned out, the moment I touched the killing stone and release Tamamo's flesh from her prison, something else had to take its place inside of that rock… And that something else was…

And from inside my pocket, I caught what I wanted, and soon displayed in front of me for the world to see: a small black shard emitting a small gleam of light. I hear a confused hum from the monster in front of me and a question mark from the bird, but then I gripped that stone with all of my might, and suddenly, its light grew and grew until it momentarily blinded even the whiteness of the arena surrounding us. In the end, when everything came back to normal, I was holding something else entirely: a large, massive black broadsword with silver edges, crow wings as a guard and handle shaped like a crow's talon holding a small black jewel at the pommel. Yeah, that's right: the moment Lady Tamamo's flesh was freed, the killing stone instead sucked away from me all of my fallen angel powers and energy directly from my soul, and stored everything inside itself, which I can summon at will now…

I am now _completely human_ in spirit and flesh, and now… This sword, this **black blade of misfortune** , is nothing but my powers taking shape. So, this is Azazel's present from his blood… Can't say that I hate it.

"You… Azazel's… Kin…" And for the first time in a long while, Vali Lucifer calls for me, his eyes shining bright golden at the sight of my new weapon. Oh, so he knows, of course he would know, he's the one who Azazel talks the most in his diary(fortunately, in a platonic way).

"You're wrong, Lord Vali…" I said in a confident voice, raising my sword to point at him and his surprised stare. "I am… **Kokuto Kurokami** , the man who always has luck by his side. I don't belong to anyone, or anything, be the Grigori, be by the binds of Azazel's name in my blood, be fate itself. I am the one who cuts through destiny and whoever crosses my way. And now… That includes you!"

"Futile… Words… Useless… Will… For everything… Shall fall… In… My… Presence!" The white armor roars, gesticulating for the crystal in its grasp as it started to shine brighter now, just like the demonic octagram halo behind him. The demonic aura around it was too strong, so much that even my sword started to react to it by gleaming a dark light from its pommel. The hazel stare becomes brighter, and so he opens a smile, showing his sharp dragonic teeth. "Human… Devil… Angel… Fallen Angel… Divinity… Hybrid… It matters naught… For everything falls… Everything withers… Everything vanishes… In the face… Of the end."

"Well then, Mr. Vali The-End Lucifer… Let's dance." I said pointing my black sword at him. "For the play ain't over till the fat lady sings. And this sword shall be the reason of your fall, your reason for defeat, and its name its…!"

 **Kurokami** , the angelic black blade of misfortune!


	27. Elizabeth

**And so the wheel of fate still turns in this story, yay! the climax of climaxes is coming! And dont worry, I will make all the worthwhile with the things I have in mind. And this time... Things will get very personal! Kokkun and his adventures finally mash with the history of the heavenly dragons, and if this will end in pizza, we all know... But at least luck shall be by his side... For now!**

 **DxD belongs solely to Ichiei Ishibumi and its respective magazines. All the OCs are my properties, tho.**

* * *

"You… Now… Completely… Human…? But… Why? Humans… Weak… Foolish… Greedy… And selfish… Why… Become… One?"

"I don't disregard anything you said, Lord Vali. Humans are indeed foolish, greedy, stupid, weak and really, really easy manipulated. And true, the lack the typical strength typical of fallen angels and devils, cant even compare them to Gods, and they don't shoot lightning from their fingertips or fart away firestorms. But that's actually okay by me. Because, even without all those, us, _humans_ , hold within ourselves something much, much more powerful and precious than any power of this universe. Trust me, I am _100% human_ now, so I know this, very much."

"HUUUUUUH~… And what… That… Should…be? Tell… Me… _Human_."

"…"

"…?!"

"Huhuh… That's a se-cret~, okay?"

 ***BAAAAAAAN!***

 ***SLASH!***

"Insolent… Pathetic… Weak… Human…" And I didn't even have to turn around to slash away that miniature meteorite that came down into my direction, using Kurokami(Trademark, please don't steal) to slice that piece of burning ground into two, that hit the wall right behind me and exploded in a show of flames and sparks, illuminating the once blank arena into deep crimson and black. The white King in front of me let out a surprised gasp, leaning forward onto his seat.

"But I do have an answer for you, O lord Vali of the Demon Realm. Now you have to ask yourself one question: Do I feel luck? Well, do ya, punk?" I said with a grin, turning my head and body around and facing him with my blade ready for the final showdown, light energy running through the blade like a chainsaw made out of sparkles. He summons his crystal shaped like an octagram once again as it starts to glow bright hazel, and several light weapons start to appear right behind him. "And the answer to that is thus: _Yes_. I do feel lucky."

"Disappear." He claims, signing a charging gesture as the swords of light started to rain in my direction! Too bad for him, I started to slash the air right in front of me like in one of those superhero movies, the blade dancing and protecting from the coming projectiles as they would collide against it and turn into light particles of nothingness. When they stopped, before he could summon even more, I ran, I jumped on his direction and readied my sword for a clash! He snaps his fingers, and suddenly the crystal and the halo behind him turn bright blue, and so, coming like a true comet, I saw a giant broadsword cutting through the air to reach me in high speed! So fast, I could only hold myself for the impact, being tossed away from it alone, and launched even further by the sheer destructive wave it created! I landed on my two feet, stretching my arm a few times! Curses, that one hurt, almost dislocated my arm! The sword, which was a large blue sword of golden details and holy aura, danced in the air, following Vali's finger movements. " _Durandal_ … **Destroy**."

And without a second less, the sword of name Durandal smashed itself on the floor and created a massive wave of energy from the blade, coming at me like a stampede of wild animals! I tried to defend myself using my own sword, but even Kurokami wasn't enough to block the immensely powerful barrage of energy on my way! I came down flying away and hitting the wall once again! So this Durandal sword is a hard-hitter! If I want to stop it and reach Vali, I have to rely on something else besides brute strength since not Kurokami can defeat it. I didn't even blink and the sword launched another barrage of energy slashes to my direction, so without losing any second, I ran through the wall avoiding his hits! Slash after slash, leaving a crater of destruction in their wake but not being fast enough to even reach me! As always, luck is by my side even at the worse situations!

"Just… Just a bit more…!"I cursed to myself while running on the wall, closing the distance between me and the demon Lord and his power Crystal. This Durandal might be a berserker kind of sword, but if I'm fast enough I will surely bypass its immense power! However, things weren't to be as I hear a loud metallic ***CLANK!*,** forcing me to look at the middle of the circle where I heard the sound from. The azure sword has now fallen, and I feel an intense heat coming to my direction! "What the…?!"

Too late: I was going fast, but not fast enough to notice the shower of flames coming to my direction like a ferocious viper and engulfing me in its burning embrace. Hot, too hot! Burning! I let out a wail of pain as my whole body was fire, and the sheer impact of the charging fire made me lose my balance and fall onto the ground with a loud ***TUM!*,** Kurokami falling together with me and sticking on the ground **.** As fast as I could, I started to roll and roll on the ground to get rid of the flames, still feeling it burning away my skin and hair, but worse of all, ruining all of my clothes. A glimpse forward, and now I notice the crystal and the halo both emitting a different color, a tone of orange, as them and Lord Vali were now surrounded by flames coming from the depths of hell, like a vision of the apocalypse itself. He then signs his hand forward towards me, and the flames started to dance even more so crazily.

"Fire!" He shouted. And so, tentacles of pure crimson dancing auras came to my suffering from all directions! No escape, no way out, the flames coming closer and ready to burn me to a crisp when Im already suffering a true inferno on my skin! I have no choice then. I let the flames cover me whole, the intense heat growing even more, the layers of my body little by little turning into ashes and my eyeballs and tongue dissolving from my orifices. I let myself burn until the pain went away as soon as my nerves were all burnt out and I could no longer hear or see because of my melted eyes and eardrums, my legs no longer being able to hold stand the carcass my body has become and making me fall on my knees along with my burnt layers, little by little falling onto the floor like a cheap candle. My hands, with the little strength they still had, blindly reached for the middle of my chest, eagerly searching for something that wasn't charcoaled meat or ashes, and since my senses had become dull due to the burns, I could only hope for the sensation of losing my fingers against something harder than them, which at this point would be anything. I searched and searched, my senses getting dull and my mind getting blank, until… Until… Until… Found it.

"As… -lan…"

 ***WOOOOOOOSH!***

"Huuuuh~…?"

"Man, that was close! I feel like I just dumped a big crap after a 3-hour car tour in a bumpy road! Talk about a turn of events, I am indeed the man who has luck by his side!" And then space! I finally got myself some so-deserved space as I summoned Aslan and breakdanced my way to get those flames away using Schrodinger to get my vitality back! Yes! Be solid, be liquid, be flames, as long as I can hold myself into a state in which I am both and neither unharmed and harmed by the laws of the world, I can use Schrodinger to on my own advantage! I was now in the heart of the circle of flames I created around me, rolling and dancing around with my gauntlets and greaves oozing steam from their exhaustion pipes! In the end, I stood up from the ground and leaped towards my sword, kicking it from the ground up to the sky, which I jumped and then out myself right next to it! "Now, have at thee!"

I say, I kick the sword towards him, or rather, is pesky, irritating little crystal, the black blade cutting its way towards the air and piercing the infernal fire like scissors on silk, opening its way to his absolute defense! He lifts his hands and the crystal morphs colors for a bit, but to no use: my sword was faster, and hit itself against his crystal, bumping violently against it and twirling away back to my hand as I landed with my two feet. It may sound like it was a failure, but it wasn't: from the crystal, some shards of it were broken and fell onto the floor before disappearing in thin air.

"Gotcha this time. This is what you get for messing with Kokuto Kurokami, the man wh-…" But before I could even finish my sentence, I heard a rather feminine scream echo across the room and pretty much rip my soul a little for being so deranged. It wasn't me, it weren't Lord Vali, but it was the crystal who screamed for dear life, the voices of maidens resonating from inside only to die down a few moments later. I cracked my neck one time, trying to swallow what just happened in that spam of a second. So those were the screams of the spirits trapped in that crystal, and just by hearing them, I already having other thoughts about this whole ordeal. I feel a little bad, if just a little. I support my sword on my shoulder, and let out a sigh. "Ashes to ashes, dust to dust. If just for a second, I faltered. But don't worry, Lord Vali, I won't hesitate again…"

"Insect…" He snaps his finger once again, and then… I found myself on air. Wait, what?

"What the hell…?!" I screamed to myself. Yeah, what the hell! There was no logic, no reason, I just found myself on thin air above the ground, and down below, several, innumerable blade blades oozing a rather dangerous, dark aura were pointing at me, ready to strike me at once! What was that, how this scenario changed so fast in less than a second?! Could it be… Time-manipulation again? Just like with Mr. Bacchus?! Nah, no time to think about that, I am going to become a shish-kebab if I don't think fast! But how am I going to do that in midair?! Think fast! "Damn it! Azathoth…!"

 **"[SWORD BIRTH]…"** I hear the sounds of snaps once again and under that command, the blades were launched like missiles against me! However, because I activated Azathoth right on the nick of time, I moved my body in a way in midair using all my strengths! *TING! TING! TING!*, the blades would collide and stuck within themselves in midair, stopping their attack or downright blocking each other like a wood puzzle, while in the middle of such chaos I remain unharmed! I hear a hum coming from Vali, and I grin. "Impossible…"

"Think fast!" I said to him, using Kurokami as a net to gather all the swords around me in one big pile of blades and toss them against Vali like a metal comet! As expected, he didn't even flinched, only lifted his hand as the crystal changed colors again to a bright golden and a yellow aura took over them, shielding them from the upcoming attack. I landed on my feet but what I felt later wasn't hard solid floor, but water! "Gwah… BLUB, BLUB, what the…!"

 **"[ZENITH TEMPEST]…"** When I snap out of my surprise, I see myself drowning in a wave of hot water coming out of nowhere! From my part of the arena, the whole area was engulfed in water and dark clouds, little by little suffocating me with water and rain while by the other side Vali stood normally on his throne, unaffected by the sudden climate changes, shadows with several eyes aiming at me in a crimson light as a giant ice maiden rose from behind his throne and reach its hand for me. "And… Now… **[ABSOLUTE DEMISE** ]!"

"Morgoth, come forward!" I raised my hand and like lightning the demonic guitar came down for my aid. Suddenly, the rain above me froze to killing degrees and the drops turned into solid water bullets. Not just that, the ocean itself started to freeze by the instant! Acting fast, I pulled Mortgoth closer and even with my frostbitten fingers, I was able to play its strings, letting out an echo of waves, powerful enough to blow the water around me before they've turned into ice. I fall, I clash onto the ground of ice and see myself as victim of the frozen drops coming from the ceiling! I am quick enough to put Morgoth away and instead summon Crimson King, the nunchakus of lightning instead reaching for them and lighting them up with electric energy. "Crimson King, full power!"

*SHIIIIIING~…!*

"UUUGH~…!" And passing through one frozen drop to another, the lightning lighten up the entire room, which was until now covered in dark clouds and rain, in a blinding, cold glow. I hear loud, irritated growl coming possibly from Lord Vali, and when I could see yet again, I saw myself still on the frozen ocean from before, but in front of me, shielding his eyes with his large claws, Vali stood now between his shadow minion which were struggling to keep its eyes open, and the giant ice doll, which was little by little falling onto itself. Now that's my chance! Picking Kurokami yet again, I slice from the frozen ocean beneath my feet a large chunk of ice and picked it by sticking my black sword onto it!

"Hey, King Vali, Catch!" I said as I tossed that piece of ice towards him, or rather, the giant ice maiden next to him, which hit it right into its ugly blank face, making it ruin completely and fall right on top of the throne of the King, covering it in snow. However, when the frozen dust cleaned, I saw that again the golden shield protected him from the iced debris. However, from the shine of his eyes, I could see that they were burning quite menacingly at me. Oh, did I make him mad or something?

"Lavinia… You… Insignificant… Human…" I hear a voice showing quite a level of regret, sadness and anger, and for that, I made a pose with Kurokami pointing at him, showing instead some defiance. It's not like he's giving me much choice, and I am not enjoying this at all, but its something I should do. He raises his hand to his crystal, which them turned bright silver just like the halo behind him. Suddenly, several white runes appeared behind him and pointed at me. "Perish…"

"Not yet, just not yet." I murmured to myself, bracing myself for the possible outcome of that attack. No matter what comes from those runes, it won't be a good thing at all. Even so, I stood my stance, and sharpen my senses against that new attack. "Bring it, Lord Vali… Dance with me under this pale moonlight."

"Very well… **Ragna Crimson** …"

 ***CRASH!***

" _VAAAAAAAAAAALEEEEEEEEEEHH_ …!" But before anything else could ever come forth from our clash, it wasn't meant to be as another figure came down crashing through the city of Dis wearing a crimson red armor and emerald jewels themed after a dragon, his eyes burning with utter rage and passion as he completely ignored me and came down crashing against Lord Vali's golden shield, completely shattering it and bypassing his previous impenetrable defenses and giving a reset tilt on the crystal on the white side. No doubt about it: it's the so-called Red Dragon from Azazel's book, but this can only mean… Oh no. Oh no. From its gauntlet, the red dragon summoned a massive blade and aimed at the white one. "ASCALON, CHARGE!"

"Not yet. Just… NOT YET!" But before any damage could be done to the white one, he went ahead and smacked the red dragon away with a silly backhand slap, making the red one hit the reconstructing wall and fall onto the ground, shattering its helmet and revealing a face I wasn't expecting at all to encounter in this whole ordeal… Or at all, because I was having such a wonderful day otherwise.

"H- _Hyoudou_ …?" I muttered to the face of the brown-haired, ass-faced classmate of mine who is known as the most perverted student in Kuoh academy, wearing the red clad of the crimson dragon and fighting with devil wings on his back. Wait, Hyoudou is a devil?! Wait, scratch that, Hyoudou is the Red Dragon?! However, he didn't even pay attention to me as he stood up once again, walked towards the throne of the white one and reached for him ready for another try, only to be shoved down the ground by the massive gravitational shift on us, making him stand on his knees on the floor and me to kiss the floor.

"Vali… How… WHY?!" Hyoudou cursed under his breath, trying but failing to even stand up against the gravitational pull the Earth calls out of the sudden while I can only lift my head to look at the unfolding madness. Lord Vali, on the other hand, just hums something under his breath, not even paying attention to me anymore, having his interests solely on Hyoudou.

"Strong… Issei Hyoudou… Strong… You. Already able… To do… **It**. But not now… You need… To make us whole… Make us whole… Issei Hyoudou." The white one murmurs, much for Hyoudou's ire. Suddenly, Lord Vali reaches for its crystal and smashes it to pieces with its bare hands, making the previous clear crystal turn into small, eight-colored small cystals instead, which them glided all the way to behind him, right above his head. With my fox eye, I could sense that one, each one of those fragments carry a soul.

"Answer me, Vali! **ANSWER ME**!" Roared the white dragon, still trying but failing to even get himself off the ground. The white devil dragon said nothing, only again snaps his fingers and, out of the sudden, the eight crystals above him started to glow intensily, each passing second their shine growing more and more until they were completely blinding. In the end, once the light died down, all the curses from Hyoudou's mouth suddenly died down as the crystals were replaced by new figures: the image of eight nude, asleep girls of different forms and statures. Hey, I recognize some of them: Rias Gremory, Akeno Himejima, Koneko Toujou, the new student council president, the new president of the Occult Research club, that chesnut-haired Christian transferred student, the new homeroom teacher and that noble foreign student. Hyoudou let out a gasp: "Rias… Akeno… Asia… Girls…?"

"You… Still weak… Weak… Weak…Make us whole… Hyoudou. Makes us whole…" The white King only replies, causing even more confusion from both of us. _Makes us whole_? What's that supposed to mean?

However, I wasn't even able to question Lord Vali back, as suddenly the crucified girls burst away in silvery white flames! From in front of me, I heard Hyoudou let out a wail so deranged, so alien and loud that I doubted for a second that he was even a sapient being for a second. In unison with his moans of loss and despair, I could hear deep inside my mind the screams of horror and pain from the wailing women on top of us all, all begging for Hyoudou to save them. And down below, the immovable King of white, without a single drop of remorse in his eyes. I sensed a large amount of energy leaking right in front of men, coming from Hyoudou as the jewels in his dragonic armor would shine brighter than the sun, but to no avail, the gravity was still too strong for us to even move…

"NOOOOOOO…! RIAS…! AKENO…! ASIA…! SHIRONE...! IRINA…! XENOVIA...! ROSE...! RAVEL...!" In an attempt to stop such madness, Hyoudou lifted his gauntlet hand to reach for the burning girls, all of them screaming in agony and pain but to no avail as it practically fell and sank onto the ground. It would scream from inside [BOOST] countless times, but all it did was to make the gravity on us even become heavier and denser. "VAAAAAAALIIIIII… DAMN YOU…! I WILL… I WILL KILL YOOOOOOOOOUUUU…!"

"Make us whole, Hyoudou… Make us whole…" But the white king paid no mind to Hyoudou's, he just continued to make the maidens burn and hum under his breath. As I could hear from inside the flames, some of them were praying, some of them were cursing, but all of them could only scream and wail in agony, but above all else, they were claiming and calling for Hyoudou's name, making things even worse, I was even wanting him to reach them just to make it stop.

"DAMN YOU, VAAAAAALIIIII… WHY?! WHY?! WHYYYYY…?!" More calls of [BOOST] would come from him, but only making things worse. However, in a spurt of the moment, Hyoudou managed to pull himself off the ground, pick up his own sword and charge against the mighty white one… Only to be again to be swapped like an insect, hitting the floor hard. After that, that was a moment of silence, and then… Sobbing. He was crying now. "Vali, please… Ill… I will do anything… I will give my title, my name, my victories… Just… Leave them alone… I will give you anything Vali, just… Just…"

"I want you… To make us… _Whole_." Again with this nonsense was the answer of the white one, and Hyoudou's response was more sobbing, more despair.

"I DON'T KNOW WHAT YOU MEAN BY THIS!" Hyoudou screamed again being subjected to the massive gravitational pull to the center of the Earth, and Vali in response could only chuckle, hearing loud and clear the feminine voices behind him calling for Issei, Hyoudou, darling, with the same not being able to do a thing. In the end, his tone died in a despaired, hollow one, still sobering in total darkness. "I don't… Understand… I don't know… What you mean by this…"

"You… Will… Know. You… Know." And next Vali raised both his fingers, and in just a moment…

 _'Issei…'_

 ***SNAP**!*

In just a moment, less than an attosecond, all the maidens I knew from a distant burst from inside out in white flames, their insides and bones turning into ashes before they could even reach the ground. The once blank, immaculate floor, was now being tinted in black from the ashes of the eight girls that composed the crystal and halo of the demon Lord, but worse of all… All in the eyes of Hyoudou, who for some reason was close to those girls. I heard a gasp, and then the shower of dust tinted him as well, covering him in ashes and turning his whole body and armor into an ashen tone of dark.

And then… Silence.

…

…

*BAAAAAAAAAAAAAAMMM!*

And it was the last drop. In that moment of silence, I could almost feel my eardrums burst with the deafening sound of the explosion of power that came from where the Hyoudou was. A pillar of crimson and black energy emerged from his fallen and broken state, and from inside the flames, I could see an even more deranged, sick crimson dragonic armor flapping its demonic wings away from the pillar of light to reveal itself…

Pure crimson armor, emerald jewels with the symbol on the infinite printed on them, and vapor coming out its orifices, that thing was more dragon than man, and in that same instant, it disappeared completely, only to reappear right on top of all of us, blade in hands, descending its punishment right above the white one…!

Wait… If this Vali guy is the White Dragon emperor… And Hyoudou is the red dragon emperor… this means…! Oh no, Oh no!

"Hyoudou, STOP!" I tried to reach a hand for him and screamed his name between his own deranged shouts of pure hatred and wrath, but it was to no avail, as he descended himself like a comet upon Vali. Vali on the other hand lifted a hand a created a translucid white shield in front of himself, which them collided with the tip of Hyoudou's blade and causing a massive shockwave around.

"VAAAAAAAAALEEEEEEEEEH…!"

"Yes… YES… COME… HYOUDOU ISSEI…!"

"Hyoudou, _STOOOOP_ …!"

" _GYAAAAAAAAAAAAAH_ …!"

…

* * *

Okay, I know this sounds a little out of place, this tension going on and stuff, but let's play a game, shall we? Here's a quiz: What do you think it will happen next?

 **A.** I somehow am able to stop Hyoudou on his autistic frenzy and save the day;

 **B.** Hyoudou listens to me stops his crazy assault for me to explain to him why this is a bad idea or;

 **C.** Hyoudou goes on with his attack and shit gets real, really fast.

Please, make your bets…

…

…

…

Okay, times up. Lets see what the answer is…

* * *

"VAAAAAAAAALEEEEEEEEEH…!"

"Yes… YES… COME… HYOUDOU ISSEI…!"

"Hyoudou, _STOOOOP_ …!"

" _GYAAAAAAAAAAAAAH_ …!"

 **[REFLEC-…!]**

 **[EXPLOSION!]**

 **[PENETRATE!]**

 ***DOOOOOOON!***

 ***STAB!***

 **…**

Yep, should have gone for A.

"Ugh… Ugh…" And Hyoudou was able to do it. By bypassing Vali's shield, nothing could stop Hyoudou now to finish him off with his sword stabbing the demon king right where his chest should be. Blood spluttered everywhere, and crimson began to tint the once silvery white armor sitting on the throne, which was now being held on the mercy of the crimson knight on top of it. Vali tried to stand his head up, only to Hyoudou to twist the knife, making it docile once again.

"How about that… You fucker… You fucking bastard… I should have known… I should have known…" Despite his success, Hyoudou didn't seem content with his victory as tears would run down his eyes and taint the white armor as well. He twisted the broken sword on his possession one more time, and gritted his teeth. "This is… For everyone… Not just the girls… But Sairaorg, Dulio, Kiba, Gaspard, Mr. Tobio… Everyone… You killed… This is… The end."

"…"

"…"

…

"Huhuh… _The end_? The end… You know this is not… The **end** … Nor the **beginning** …" And from the hollow sockets from its helmet, the white armor turned into gaze to Hyoudous surprised eyes once again, coming forth as closer to him to spill its last words of spite and victory. Oh no… This is bad! This is really bad! Since the dragon was weakened, the gravitational pull was no longer pulling me down, so as fast as I could I stood up, picked Kurokami and ran for them to end it all. "Its… never… Over… Nor… Starting… All it does is… Turn… And turn… And TURN… UNTIL NOW!"

"What…?"

"Hyoudou! Out of the way! This is…!"

 ***DOOOOOON…!***

And then… Complete and utter white. My vision was completely engulfed by a cold, wild blankness that blew me completely away, making me hit my back on the wall and fall all the way to the ground, shielding my face with my own hands in order to be able to at least withstand the powerful whiteness that I would face. I hear hyoudous scream into the whiteness, but I couldn't figure from where it came or went, all I could see was the whiteness… Pure whiteness, like the whole world has left nothing else but the void.

However, as the whiteness started to die down, I could not only dread of what would come next. The red one and the white one have met, and unlike all other iterations of the tale, this time their match has been decided inside the Inferno tower, which means… Once I could see at least one palm in front of my nose and could tell left from right and the arena I once stood, I got up from my sitting state, called for my black sword once again and ran towards the pillar of light at the horizon of my sight. I sensed Hyoudou also coming closer, and without even looking at each other, we ran towards the remaining light at the other side of the city of Dis in the hopes of finding the white dragon emperor…

But then… What we got was something completely different. From where the dragon king once stood, we saw the back of something… No, _someone_. Wearing a white shirt, a long black skirt and carrying with herself a black katana, stood a dark long-haired woman facing the other direction in the heart of the fainting pillar of light. I gritted my teeth, as I could hear a hum of confusion by my side, I assume it was Hyoudou.

"Who… Who is this…?" I hear him ask. I could only grit my teeth and my hold onto my own sword. So, this is really the fate my father was talking about. I held my breath, and then let out a whisper with the cursed name that was written in his diary, a name that I didn't want to believe it I would have to face…

" _Elizabeth_ …" I said the name, as she turned her gaze, revealing her fair complexion and grey eyes, towards us from above her shoulder, and shined a smile. **Elizabeth** , and _first_ … And _only_ … White Dragon emperor.

 _'And so, the wheel of fate… Starts to turn.'_


	28. Scala Ad Caelum

**And so the story continues to the ultimate climax and appex of this arc and maybe this fic as a whole. Not that I dont have something prepared for when this arc ends, but so far, this has been my greatest and most epic arc, which might not mean much in this fandom, but I feel a bit accomplished by it, and that makes me happy. Also, the meaning of the title is latin for Stairway to heaven, which... Is kinda ccurate, shit will go down this chapter, and if youre reading this right now, I have only your thanks for pushing me forward this fic. Thanks for all, have a nice read and dont forget to R &R by the end of the chapter!**

 **DISCLAIMER: DXD belongs to Ichiei Ishibumi and its respective magazines. I own only my ocs and the likes.**

* * *

' _In some remote corner of the universe, poured out and glittering in innumerable solar systems, there once was a star on which clever animals invented knowledge. That was the highest and most mendacious minute of World History - Yet, only a minute. After nature had drawn a few breaths the star grew cold, and the clever animals had to die_. '

…

And so, after being stabbed by the red dragon, the white king was engulfed in a pillar of light, the sheer power liberated from such being so much it blew all of us away to the limits of the city of Dis and bit more. There was no sound, only the white blankness embracing everything with its cold arms while pushing us away with the force of a hurricane. For a moment, there was nothingness, only the silent whiteness…

And as fast as it came, it died, leaving us with instead of the blankness of the town of the damned, and a new figure coming from the place where the Lord of the Demons fell: holding a black katana and wearing a white shirt with a long black skirt, it was a female of long black hair and fair skin coupled with grey eyes. The moment she turned around to face us with her flashing grey stare, my whole body froze, chills running down my spine as my entire bloodstream became as cold as ice. By my side, Hyoudou held his eyes bewildered to the new character that stood where his previous rival previous were. So… There she is, the first, last and only White Dragon Emperor, the herald of the Apocalypse, the Alpha and the Omega…

 _Elizabeth_.

"W-who… Who…?"

"Don't you interfere, Hyoudou!" I pushed Hyoudou away from my path as I, with my own sword at hand, dashed towards the herald of the end, the one written in Azazel's diary, ready to strike her and finish this with my own hands. I leaped, I jumped into the air, and with all of my might I pulled Kurokami up for a decisive strike, Elizabeth showing not even the slightest concern about me. I wouldn't let her, anyway! "Elizabeth…!"

 ***WOOOSH!***

 ***TING!***

"…?!" But in less than a blink of an eye, I saw a golden glimpse, and before I knew it I was shoved away after she parried Kurokami with the guard of her own sword, golden sparkles flying everywhere and her grey eyes shining a smug aura. I couldn't let myself give in: I took a stance, landed on my feet and leaped towards her yet again, our blades clashing and sparkles flying everywhere as we locked eyes, being able to see death completely reflected on her orbs as she would barely move with one hand handling the katana, while I struggled with both my hands just to keep her in place. "You… So you are Elizabeth… Nice to meet you, but it's not today that the world will end!"

"Huhuh, so naïve, son of the Watcher. It is not for you to decide such, but keep struggling, it's cute." Her voice, slow and silky like cotton, echoed inside her playful lips, and before I knew it, she pulled out the saya from her blade using her other hand and tackled me with it in the stomach. I let out a dry cough, losing contact with her, and without a single moment to lose, she hits me yet again in the chin in a cutting move, such strength that I was launched backwards and fell on my back a few meters away. She covered her niponic sword yet again with her wooden scabbard and crossed her arms while I stood up once again. "Son of the watcher, Kokuto Kurokami, no good will become with your defiance. Things that should be, will be, no matter what. But if you feel bold, you are always welcome to try. But not now… Not now."

"You…" I try to stand and make a stance, but even now that last blow was too much for my body which wouldn't stop shaking, making me lose balance and knee myself on the floor. Looking down on me one last time, Elizabeth smirked and then turned around to face the opposite direction. Suddenly, she slashed the air in front of her with her Katana, and right in front of our very eyes, the white dragon lass opened a dark portal on thin air, which looked more like an orb of dark energy. She guarded her sword once more, and took a step inside, but not before take a quick glance over her shoulder, and shine us a grin at us, no, at him.

"See you on the other side…"She whispered, and just like it, she took one step inside and was embraced by the darkness of her portal, disappearing within the black void she created.

"Wait…!" I tried to stand up and reach for her, but it was too late: without making a sound, Elizabeth disappeared into her portal and then it closed on thin air, leaving nothing behind. I extended one hand in a futile attempt to reach her, but recoiled it back in frustration. So close, yet so far… Talk about a letdown! I clenched my fist and let out a sigh. "Damn it… Damn it."

"Kurokami…?" And fate this time doesn't seem to want to give me a break, the voice right behind my back pushing me back to the reality of this current situation. I let out a sigh and turned around to see someone I didn't expect to see here, not in a million years: Issei Hyoudou, that perverted, dumb yet somehow charismatic classmate of mine who somehow has turned himself into a devil and, apparently, is the red dragon emperor of this generation. He was looking at me with a surprised, vacant yet strangely serious expression, but for him, I could only give him a side glance from the corner of my eye.

"Hyoudou…" I said with a gruff, and soon enough summon back Kurokami away, taking my way to nowhere but up into the Inferno and giving my back to him in response. Master Vergil, who got taken back by the light pillar not too long ago, took flight around once more and was now flying around the perimeter doing whatever. "Whatever you wanted to do here, you better turn back now. Thanks to you, now Elizabeth is back and on the loose and my chances of making a dent out of her has turn into dust. But I'm gonna try to kick her ass anyway. See you in school tomorrow, Hyoudou…"

"H-Hey, wait a minute, Kurokami!" He calls for me, and I stop on my tracks to turn my head to his direction. I can see the confusion and frustration in his eyes, and honestly they are pissing me off for some reason. He summons his crimson gauntlet of the red dragon emperor and stands to face me. "You… How do you… How much do you know… About everything?"

"Probably more or less than you, that's for sure." I reply, taking a good look at his red gauntlet, which reminded me of a very cool cosplay thing. I turn my eyes back at his face on sign. "What I know and how much I do is not important right now for neither of us. I just have to go kick Elizabeth's white dragon ass and then we can pretend we don't know each other again. Just go home and wait that I don't die today or whatever…"

"Wait, so you do know what the hell has been going on!" He screams at my back,. I could hear his steps following me yet I refuse to turn around and face, for as it seems that he has less of an idea of what is going on around, and explaining won't do him or me any good. He can even turn into a liability if I tell him anything, so I better give him the silent treatment for the best. "Who the hell is that girl?! Elizabeth?! And what the hell do you mean about her being the White Dragon?! What about Vali?! Where the hell is Vali?!"

"The Vali you speak of is gone. Or rather, he never existed to begin with. There is only a part of **her** , and now this part is back to **her** thanks to you." I spoke to him without even looking back, as he grunts and buffs yet again, his steps growing violent and angrier. I can only ignore him for now, I have bigger fishes to catch. "The only thing I can do now is go find her and kick her ass before she goes around unsealing apocalyptic beasts at leisure. Trust me, you'll only make things worse by coming…"

"Seriously, how _much_ do you know?! And what do you mean by Vali being part of her?! Answer me, damnit! KUROKAMI…!" And I saw the shadow linger all over me, and in one swift but brute move, Hyoudou catches me by the shoulder to make me turn to him, his eyes practically glowing in pure rage and confusion, teeth gritted and showing, I even feel a bit intimidated, if just a bit. He really wants his answers, but unfortunately I can't give them at all. "You answer me right now, Kurokami, OR ELSE I WILL…!"

"I won't. I can't."

"WHY THE FUCK NOT?!"

"Because if I do, you will die!"

"…?!" And that came out angrier than I wanted. I really did want to get my point across, but that came out as too strong, and for such, he took one step back in surprise and shock. I really wanted to fake this statement, but it is true. So far, whatever is written in Azazel's bible has been true, so I can only assume this will also become a fact if the right conditions are met. For is bewildered ones, I sigh back with my own eyes down, trying to look at him without staring back. He's in shock, he would be. "Die…? What… What do you mean…?"

"Exactly that: Whatever happened to Vali Lucifer, if given the chance, will also happen to you, and after that, there is no turning back. Something will take over you and that dragon of yours, and after that, you will be erased, without a single trace, together with everyone you ever loved and more." I said without a single hint of doubt or hesitation, taking one step forward to show how serious I was while he took one step back. I took one final breath and lowered my face to look back at him. "So, instead of you doing this foolishness and dooming us all to an early grave, I will go on ahead and kick her ass for you and be done with this bullshit. I have a date with Yuki this weekend and she will be mad if just the End of the World stops me from going."

"I will… I will die…?" He continues to repeat that phrase like some sort of mantra, but then he blinks, and pulls me yet again to face him. This is already getting tiresome. "Kurokami, do you really think that will stop me?! That Bastard… That fucker… He killed all Rias, he killed Asia! Akeno, Ravel, Rose, Shirone, Irina, Xenovia! They're all dead! If someone is going to die today, is HIM!"

"Stop for a second to think, Hyoudou: This is what she wants. He wants you to get angry and careless so that she can further her plans. It happened once, and if you don't control yourself and let it go, it will happen again. Don't be stupid and turn around." I lightly pushed him, and he took once step back, soon getting back on his feet to turn his rage to me. He was basically seething now, rage and hatred oozing from his stare, and honestly, I grew scared of him. This perverted, dumb but otherwise harmless classmate of mine is intimidating me, even if just a little. This is a bad sign altogether. "Look, I have no idea what your deal with those girls were, but I can see that they meant the world for you, don't think I can't sympathize with you, and I am sorry for all of that. But! I can't let you and your emotions ruin what is already very broken, even more now this can mean the end of all of us. So just turn around, go home and watch some anime with Yoko Hikasa or something, I will take care of the rest. And if you come back, I swear to God, I will kick your ass as well."

"AND WHAT MAKES YOU THINK YOU OF ALL PEOPLE CAN STOP HER?! IF YOU REALLY THINK I WILL STAND DOWN AND WAIT FOR YOU TO KILL HER INSTEAD OF ME FOR ALL THE SHIT SHE HAS BEEN PULLING, YOU ARE COMPLETELY IN THE WR-…!"

 ***PUNCH!***

"…!"

"…"

…

"Hyoudou, Hyoudou, that's really unfair, Hyoudou. I think you broke my hand with that thick skull of yours, Hyoudou…" I said with a pained voice, removing my bloody hand away from his blood-splattered face to see a mix of surprise and deadpan from it. I went ahead to shut him up with a good punch in the face, and the moment my fist connected I could only have myself to blame when instead my delicate fingers got crushed and my blood splattered all over Hyoudou's face. I grit my teeth, and turned to my limping fingers. I think I broke my hand, but seeing how he suddenly stopped talking, I think I got my point across. I sighed, wrapped my fingers and hand in a bandage returned my usual composure. "I don't know what's your deal with Vali besides the white-red dragons dilemma and those girls, and honestly, I don't care very much. But I do know that if you go there, you will die; no if, buts or hows, straight up oblivion for you. So be a good person that I know that you are and go home do your homework. I am going to finish this and get myself ready for a date this weekend."

"…"

"…?" And I tilted my head to the sudden and complete silence that befell us, not a word being said between the two of us as I couldn't sense any animosity from him anymore. It's like all of his rage and anger blew up in that exact moment and left nothing but a husk of a man. He lowers his head, and I see some droplets falling onto the floor right above it. Hyoudou is in pain, putting both his hands on his face to hide his shame.

"B-But… But… I don't… They are…" He mumbles to himself between sobs and tears, and I could only sigh in some sympathy for him of all people. Maybe I pushed him a little too far, he doesn't deserve that at all. "But, Kurokami… I have no one else… Tell me, please tell me… What should I do? Rias, Asia, Akeno… And the others… They are all gone… Without them… What, what should I do?"

"It's not for me to say anything, Hyoudou, I'm just a wanderer of fate. But we are in hell right now, so the only way to go from here is up." I sighed to myself offering some words of condolences for his fallen friends/lovers/whatever, and then turning around to face my own fate from now on. I should say some other words for encouragement and grief, but I got no time and honestly I don't feel very like it. Before i could even be remotely away from his sight, I lifted a hand and gave him a light wave. "Keep moving forward, Hyoudou. You're too pure and innocent to take a life for yourself right now even as a devil. I am sure you will find some other chicks with big jugs to bury yourself into, so go ahead and live your life from now on. This won't… Be the end of the world."

I said this myself, but actually I am a bit concerned about this whole ordeal. Its clear that, compared to them, Elizabeth and even Hyoudou, I am nothing but a maggot twitching on the scalding summer sun, but I am also Kokuto Kurokami, the man who always has luck by his side, and this is the only thing I can rely on right now. I hear a soft ***TUM*** hitting the floor, and I have an idea that it was Hyoudou finally giving in to his emotions and falling onto the floor, considering that I hear more sobbing and crying soon after. He did care for those girls to go ballistic and then catatonic like that, but after what happened, there is nothing he can do besides moving forward or live in sorrow. But Hyoudou is strong and kind-hearted, I know he will live pass that and see another day to become a so-called Harem King….

I take a few steps deeper into the opposite side of the City of Dis and noticed that, right behind the throne where one of my greatest foes once stood, there was a blank passage that leaded to nowhere but the black void. I pushed the throne away, looked into the total darkness, and suddenly, cyan-colored platforms started to form right in front of me, forming a translucid staircase to nowhere but up, continuing like it seemed forever. This is the only place that leads anywhere here, so it must be the way towards where Elizabeth is. Talk about a final level-looking place, I can almost hear the victory jingo from Final Fantasy in my head…

"Whoa there, boyo. Are you sure you want to walk into that staircase to heaven? Even a birdbrain like me knows that is pretty bad news, and whatever it leads to, there is no coming back." And coming again to greet me with its talons on my shoulder, Master Vergil the crow descended upon me with his shrieking, low-tuned voice with some hints of worry as I was about to take the first step forward before his intervention came along. I turned to him with nothing but a smile and a shrug.

"I expected as much, Master Vergil. I have no other place to go but up, so I should face it with a smile instead of dread. You only live once, as they say." I shrugged yet again, taking one step forward and up to the staircase to heaven. Seeing my actions, the black crow could only jump away from my shoulder and land on the ground, where it turned its dark stare at me, and gave me a brief salute. Ah, I get it now, I guess this is where we bid ourselves goodbye.

"Sorry, man, but this trip is getting too freaky for my taste. I salute and admire your courage dude, but from now on, I rather cheer you up from here instead of witnessing your failures upfront. I will be here when you die, though, so I hope we can see each other again. In this life or in another." The bird says, and I can't blame him for not wanting to go. I am sort of scared too, but what's supposed to happen, will happen, and I guess at this point I am the only one who can try to stop it. I bid him also a quick salute as he took flight once again away from me, and turned my way towards the top of the staircase to heaven. "God have mercy on your soul, wanderer, because that bitch wont. Until next time, then."

"Yeah." Those were my final words before heading up to face my own fate.

And again, I, Kokuto Kurokami, the man who always has luck by his side, the so-called Son of the Watcher, am complete and utter alone. Not just from human contact, but any other form of interaction at all since I find myself in the blankness of the void, only the glowing stairs leading up guiding me towards an unknown future. And, honestly, I am completely okay with this. After all these years, its good to have a moment in the void, even though after that there is only two outcomes that might come once I reach the top.

I wish I could talk to Yuki one more time, or maybe play some Mario Party with my mom one more time before any of this could ever happen, or even, by any chance, eat some delicious ramen from Mr. Hebiharas ramen stand, but as it turns out, luck did not side with me this time. Maybe it's the environment, but I guess being alone now, right here and now, is more like it, I don't know, you can say that the dead and utter silence brings me solace, even in hell. Maybe I am losing my mind as I walk closer and closer to the end of the world. But in the end, my journey was cut shorter than I expected: after the 108th step, on the top of the staircase of light, I saw a door of pure whiteness. There was no back, there was no front, only a passage leading to the whiteness forward. I had no other choice, gathering the remaining of my strength and courage, I walked forward, and was again embraced by the light, as a warm, comfortable sleepy sensation started to creep over my eyes, and I start to lose the sensation of my body, the ground under my feet, and then…

 ** _*SHWAAAAH~, SHWAAAAAAAH~…*_**

Once I got my senses back to reality, I blinked once, twice, in order to get my own eyes used to the sudden brightness, and once they did, I found myself in a new, completely different scenario: the sandy, malleable ground, the gentle, soft winds on my cheeks and clothes, and the soothing, repetitive sound of waves clashing onto the shore and slowly pull itself back to the ocean. Of all places, I found myself at a beach again, but not just any beach. This shore had pure white sand below my feet, and right in front of me, I saw the imagery of a black sun over the purplish ocean, no warmth but no coldness either. Only a sensation of emptiness and blankness, like this place is eating away al of my will to live, along with sounds and sensations. In the end, my sight went forward, and there she was again, facing away from me as her black hair wavers among the winds of this desolated place, holding her katana like a cane and looking up to the dark sky and black sun, her naked feet well buried in the waving waters. Elizabeth. So here I am, at the end of the world…

"So you really came. It colors me surprised, but at the same time not. After all, you are the son of a fallen angel…" Without even turning around, she speaks directly at me as I walk towards her and stop just a few meters away from her. No change of stance, no gripping tighter, she doesn't really see me as a threat by a mile. I say nothing, only waited for her to talk again. One, two seconds pass, and she turns her head around to look me from the corner of her eyes, shining a smile. "Oh, I am so sorry. I meant to say _former_ son of the fallen angel. After all, forsaking your father's side, your fallen angel side, it takes some real courage or some really heavy stupidity tumor of a human to do this."

"I am me, and my decisions are mine and mine only. Nothing to do in being a human, or a fallen angel, just me, Kokuto Kurokami." I spoke back, making her chuckle under her breath and fully turn her body to me, flashing another smile, in such a way her figure eclipsed the black sun behind her while casting a shade over her face and figure, only her toothy grin being visible from the void.

"Then, Kokuto Kurokami, I can only assume you're dumber than I thought…" She joked, and for that I gritted my teeth a little. Even from here, I can sense how dangerous she is, so much my grip is starting to fade and my hands are trembling a little, covered in sweat. "To forsake your heritage, and come and face me without a single trace of supernatural power… You should've instead returned home, played some video-games and spent the rest of your time with loved ones, or instead try to achieve inner peace with your end. Ain't that what people like you would want in such dire times?"

"I will have time to spare to do those and many things more when I'm done with you." I said without a single drop of hesitation, but her only reaction was a surprised but amused _Hooh_ ~ lightly escaping her mouth. I summon Kurokami from the jewel in my hand and point it at her as a sign of defiance. Even with it, her only response was to unstick her katana from the waters and hold it next to her hip. "But before I stop you and your genocidal plans, I do have so questions for you… Vali Lucifer, or should I say Elizabeth White? Tell me… This cycle the diary talks about… Is it true?"

"Whaaaa~? Kokuto, darling, I have no idea of what you're talking about~. I am just an evil spirit who possessed Vali Lucifer and who wants to now destroy the world, nothing else~…" She rolls her tongue off in a way to mock me, feign ignorance, shaking her hands up and down in a surrender pose and a tongue sticking out with also a wink. Fortunately, I have the proof of her bullshittery right here with me: Putting my hand right from inside my coat, I picked the book that I have been carrying with me this whole time and toss it at her, she bothering to catch it only a few seconds before it could fall on the waters.

"You can't deceive me, White Dragon Emperor. Thanks to this memento from my fat-… From **Azazel** , I know who and what you are, what game this so-called God is playing with everyone in this planet, and how you and **he** place yourselves in it." Once in her possession, Elizabeth snapped the book open and started to read it in an alarming speed, I could see from here her surprise, doubt and then realization as she reads through the lines only to finally close the book and let out a small chuckle yet again. She tossed the book back to me, but instead I let it fall onto the sand. "But I want those words coming from your mouth, Miss Elizabeth, I want you to admit that you are playing this game, and how sick and twisted this so-called God is."

"Ohoh~, cheeky, ain't ya? No matter how you say you reject your relationship with Azazel, I can definitely say that your apple didn't fall too far from the tree." She laughed to herself with a hand over her mouth, but before I had the time to counter her words with any response, she instead turned her smiley yet daring face to me, grey eyes piercing as any sword or knife. "But yes, it is true, Kokuto Kurokami. For I am Elizabeth White, and first and only White Dragon Emperor, chosen by God to unseal both Trihexa and the Dragon of Dragons Great Red and put an end to this vicious, unjust cycle of death and rebirth."

I knew it. Even if I don't want to believe it, I had the feeling inside me saying that everything written in that book, that cursed book written by a cursed fallen angel, was truth.

Vali Lucifer, other white dragon emperors from the previous generations, they _never_ really existed in the first place; there were only _parts, fragments, pieces_ of **Elizabeth White** , that each and every one of them would inherited the Divine Dividing, the Light wings of the white dragon emperor, in order to strengthen her own powers for the ultimate combat with the beasts of the apocalypse. And the _same_ is true… About the **Red Dragon Emperor**.

It does make sense: Why the hell there are so many religions, mythologies and beliefs in the world? How is that even possible if all of them are true? Why is there so many creation and destruction myths, and if all of them are real, how does it make any sense? The answer to that is simple, yet horrifying: this is not the first time this happens, and as long as both Trihexa and Great Red exist, it will never, ever, be the last…

"You might've guessed by now, but I shall tell you anyway, dear Kokuto…" She starts with a finger lifted to call for my attention. "There are many myths and religions about the birth of Gods and deities, and all of them are true: from the Castration of the sky, to the rivers of the Sanzu, they are all true, and for a while, every one of them had their reign over their own creation and the universe, but despite this, they are three things that always were, and always will be: The Beast of the Apocalypse Trihexa, the dragon of Dragons and the drifter of Dreams Great Red, and the Ouroboros Dragon and the infinite Being Ophis. From the nothingness of the dawn of time, life would take shape; this life would grow, know their place in the universe, and from such, create life on its own. Gods, deities, titans, monsters, animals, plants, and then humans. For a while, it would be good: harmony, chaos, everything a healthy universe could and would carry. Life would go on and on, Gods would continue to be Gods, and their creations would continue to serve under then until Trihexa would awaken from the annals of the universe and, in one swift move alongside Great Red… ***PUF!*** , all gone. Gods, their creations, planets, the entire universe, gone in a blink of an eye, and then… From this nothingness, life would grow yet again…"

"Like a cycle of Samsara…"

"Bingo." She snaps her finger and points at me. "And this is how the Universe would go: Gods and their creations would rise from the nothingness before, and then after some time, both the Beast of the Apocalypse and the Dragon of Dragons would rise from their slumber and destroy everything, and from such, new life would rise. Rinse and repeat. Eventually, such encounter would adopt other names: Ragnarok, the Aztec Earthquake, the Event Horizon, and so on. Gods, of course, would reincarnate and try to spread their words and teachings for the new humans of other Gods, but in the end, like all previous times, they would fall and die after the battle between Trihexa and Great Red. It happened so many times, and so many eons ago, you can count every single grain of this immense beach as an universe, and that wouldn't even be enough to cover how many times this has happened… And for a while, this is, this was, the fate of everythin, to the smallest ant to the mightiest God, to fall, reincarnate, and go on with life… Until he showed up…"

"YHWH."

"Your dear granpappy! You must be proud!" She makes a heart with her fingers, but seeing my lack of reaction, she sighs a laugh and continues with her tale. "But yes, even after having His own creations destroyed and reincarnated with all the knowledge and pain of his previous incarnation, He didn't give up, and He became the first God to try to break this stupid cycle of pain and suffering, alongside Lucifer… And so, He created the Sacred Gears, the weapons of miracles, to arm His children and give them… _Hope,_ as minimal as it would be. I, of course, became the first White Dragon Emperor, and alongside my own Red Dragon Emperor, we took our stance and fought against the destructive duo… Only to end for naught, as the universe yet again ended, in an era that was known simply as **AxA**."

"…"

"And even so, He didn't give up, and after this era, He sacrificed himself to seal Trihexa for a while, so we could get stronger to, eventually, end this vicious cycle." She sighed, taking a time to breathe, and turn back to me. "How, you ask? I just shattered myself…"

"You… Shattered your own soul."

"Yes." She smiled. "I, alongside my dear friend, the original red dragon emperor, shattered my soul in a few spiritual pieces. The original White Dragon Emperor was no more, but at the same time, it didn't leave this world at all. I would reincarnate as someone else carrying a part of my soul, someone who would also bear the Divine Dividing, and train, become strong, and fight the red one to test our powers, and every time this someone would die, a part that was actually me would stay in my Sacred Gear and wait for the merging. When my soul and the Red One's would become whole again, we would rise the Inferno tower to the place where the beast is, unseal Trihexa and find Great Red to have them fight, and try to destroy them ourselves… And if we fail, rinse and repeat, He would reincarnate, arm us with Sacred Gears and sacrifice Himself to seal 666 and we would shatter our souls yet again, with a fraction or two more so we could train one more time…"

"So, you created another cycle of suffering and pain in order to escape another…" I grit my teeth. This is messed up, this is really messed up. I had no idea about this, but even so, I feel like I just suffered all the previous deaths of mine and countless others from eras past. "You are… You are all… Messed up."

"What can I say? We are in a mission from Him, and this is… Our **Fate**." She shrugs, but then shines me another threatening grin. "This is our next best hope. After me, there was _Belzard_ , the strongest Red One, who fell but became proof of our progress, becoming the curbstone of the era known as **BxB** , and then Elsha, who ended another era known as **CxC** with then the strongest white one. And now, in the era **DxD** , with the birth of the Strongest White Dragon Emperor of past, present and Future, and the anomaly known as Issei Hyoudou, maybe, just maybe, we can finally end this cycle caused by the monsters known as 666 and Great Red, we can finally save this Universe, and no longer beings, be they Gods or Humans, will have to fear death, darkness or The endless End. This is… Our **Fate**."

"And if you fail?"

"Pardon?"

"You said that there was a strongest White One and a Strongest Red one, yet… The cycle still remains, after all these years and generations after those, you still try! What makes you think this time will work? And if it fails? What will you do, Elizabeth White? What will you do?!"

"…"

"…"

"Isn't that obvious?" She winks at me. "I shall accept death once again, and continue the cycle of death and rebirth, His death, and the merging of our souls and the rise of the Inferno tower, until we got it right. We can only… _Hope_."

…

…

…

…

 ***WOOSH!***

" _YOU ARE FULL OF SHIEEEEEEEEEEEEEET_ -…!"

 ***SHING!***

 ***SLASH!***

"…!" And it happened in less than a blink. Wielding Kurokami, I leaped towards the so-called White Dragon Emperor and the chosen by God ready to take a chunk out of her skull, putting all of my rage and hatred I felt during such time in that one slash! I can't hear her anymore, I don't care anymore, I WILL KILL HER! However, before I could even reach her, I see her unsheathed her sword for a second to take a glimpse on her black katana, and then she closed it again. Suddenly, ***WOOSH!*,** I could no longer feel my right arm, and before I knew it, I saw Kurokami slipping away from my pulverized arm and fall on the sand. My arm… She cut my arm! No, it looks like I didn't have one in the first place. I held the clean stub and kneeled on the floor. "You… You…!"

"I see. So you choose struggle instead of accepting your fate, everybody's fate for that matter. Well, it doesn't matter, its not like you had any wording into it anyway." She puffs a sarcastic smoke, holding her katana by the sageo string to turn it around and around like a yo-yo. "Ain't that ironic? His grandson, having no fingers in this whole ordeal. We already had it with your father falling with his stupid friends in order to try to play the game his own way, adopting Vali and taking Issei under his wing to try to avoid this whole plan, and now you too choose to rebel against Fate. Ain't that funny? It's so funny, I feel like crying…"

"…"

"…"

…

"Huhuhuh…"

"…?"

"You said… That I… Rebelled against _fate_? This is wrong, Miss Elizabeth…" I said, slowly standing up and covering my stub with the sleeve which was left. I shook the bangs away from my face and turned to face her, which soured a little. I grinned for that. Me? Rebel against my own fate? This… This is funny. Way too funny. "Did you know, Miss Elizabeth? In Japanese, when you join the ideograms for Luck(運) and life(命)… You get Fate(運命). In other words, but merging one's upbringing and their will, one's existence might shine brighter…"

"Really? And what does this matter now?"

"I am… **Kokuto Kurokami** , the man who always has luck by his side!" I said, and from the empty sleeve left, a new arm grew using Schrodinger, which I used to pick Kurokami from the sand and turn it back to her. I saw another glimpse of light coming from her sword, and in another moment, I lost yet again my right arm… Or that was what was going to happen! Using Azathoth, I saw a few seconds into the future, and with a swing of my sword, I blocked and parred the invisible slash, turning it elsewhere. For the first time, Elizabeth looked surprised. "And as such, no God, no man, no fallen angel, shall tell me what to do! I am the master of my own fate, and my fate… Is to stop your madness once and for all!"

"Hoooh~… I see, I see. It looks like I will have my quota of fun while waiting for him." She smiles, finally drawing her sword and pointing at me. She wrapped the scabbard around her waist, and turned that black katana to me, a smile slowly creeping on her lips. Suddenly, two dragonic light wings came from her derriere, and they pointed themselves at me. "Very well, Son of the Watcher, the man who controls his own fate, Kokuto Kurokami… Come forth, and face your own destiny."

"Gladly!" I responded back, running towards her.

The wheel of fate… Is turning. And will turn and turn… Until the end of times…


	29. ΑxΩ

**Because the end cant come soon enough.**

 **And to end this arc with a golden key, a chapter sooner than expected. I actually thought it was a fun ride during this chapter, and i still think. As always, this end doesnt always mean the end, because it never is. Next chapter, we have the epilogue of this arc and then some more of Kokutos adventures. But in the end, the true adventurers are those who had the power to read until this chapter, and as a ficwriter, I am very happy. See ya soon, and have a nice day. it is always a nice day. and it only gets better when you enjoy your read and R &R.**

 **DISCLAIMER: DXD belongs to Ichiei Ishibumi and its respective magazines. I only own the OCs.**

* * *

…

"How many times have you died already? Maybe more than I did, maybe a bit less, I have no idea, I just lost count, how careless of me. You had all this work to come here and challenge me to a duel, and yet I'm so lost in my own thoughts, I just lost count of everything else. I apologize for that…"

"…"

"I must admit, for you to be able to hold so many of those Zoas you talk about, wielding them like Sacred Gears and even boasted with the souls of some fallen comrades, I must say even though I hate to admit: you do act and move like your father, such charisma despite that resting bitch face…"

"…"

"To use precognition to also see into the future and dodge the slashes of my dear Raikiri, the thunder-cutting sword… I must say, I feel a bit scared even for a second. I can cut around one quadrillion slashes in less than an semptosecond, and yet you managed to avoid some of them. I could cut every single atom of your body in less than a blink of an eye, so that's that, I suppose."

"…"

"Oh right. I forgot about that ability of yours. _Schrodinger_ , was it? Here, let me help you."

 ***VUPT!***

"GASP! GASP! What… What the hell…!" And I could finally breathe as I removed the cape that was covering me away and shot my body up in shock. What the hell! Did I… Did I die again? I look at my own hand, clench it a few times, and notice the small cuts onto it. Yes, I did die again.

"Rise and shine, darling. Are you ready to die once again?"

* **SLASH!***

"You…!" I didn't even turn to again grip Kurokami tightly and slashed it behind me, ready to destroy anything that might be in the direction where I heard that voice. A tall column of sand and smoke was lifted, and onto the air, there was Elizabeth White, the one and only White Dragon Emperor, who so graciously landed on her feet and turned to me.

"This is not the first time you tried a sneak attack, Kokuto. Trust me, this is starting to make you look desperate." She says, unsheathing her sword yet again, ready to strike, Instead, I lifted one hand, aimed it at her and made a fox head gesture with my fingers.

"Kon." I muttered, and from inside the sandy grounds, a giant black fox head emerged and tried to bite Elizabeth. But to no use, she just let one of her hands go inside the fox's mouth and with the scabbard of her katana, stabbed it from inside out, that fine piece of wooden protection piercing the forehead of my summon from inside out and turning it back into black dust. Damn it, and to think discovering a new ability from my time as a possessed folk of Tamamo-no-Mae would help me in the slightest! I gripped Kurokami and ran towards Elizabeth, and so again, we clashed blades! The impact was enough to blow sand all around us, yet she doesn't seem to be struggling in the slightest! On the contrary, she looks she's enjoying herself.

"You should relax a little, Kokuto. Such tension and will won't do you any good in the end of the world. Even without it, you shouldn't be in such a hurry to die." She speaks, and this is exactly the type of monologue that I was waiting for: the moment she lost her concentration, she blinks once and looks down. While she was talking about something else, I got to creep Luvah into my own sleeves, and now it was growing its vines all around her sword, and then her hand and arms. She looked surprised, but before she could do anything, I jumped back from our clash and let the vines cover her entire body. Even so, her expression remained unchanged. "Hohoh, that one is new…"

"And that shall be the last!" And from a safe distance, I picked Crimson King and morph it into the flaming spear, stabbing the mount of vines that Elizabeth had become. The bladed point came down like a crimson shooting star and suddenly, the white arms of green that were embracing my enemy suddenly turned ashen, burning completely in a dance of bright flames. I sacrificed Mrs. Argento's soul for this, but this is it! "That's it! I win!"

"Not quite, not really." I hear a murmur coming from inside the burning mountain of now black vines, and in another second, there was no more: from inside of it, the mount imploded, from within, I saw Elizabeth, completely unharmed, unfolding her wings of light, the so-called Longinus Divine Dividing. She swings her katana at my direction, and I tried to block it using Crimson King, but it was to no use: without even removing her scabbard, she went ahead and made a thrusting move onto me, completely shattering my lance and hitting me right on the neck! The sheer power she had on that made me jet myself backwards, falling on the sandy ground and gasping for air as the rest of Mrs. Shuri's soul fell all over the floor and then disappeared! I can't breathe! She completely crushed my throat with that thrust! I hear steps coming closer, and a shadow was casted upon me. Elizabeth bent herself to look over me, and sighed. "Oh my, I'm sorry for that. I wanted to just spook you, but I ended up crushing your throat on accident. Well, you can always use that Schrödinger of yours to heal this one, right?"

"Shut up…!" I reach for my hairclip to summon Morgoth and took a swing at her, only for Elizabeth to simply kick it away and completely destroy it, forsaking Lord Orpheus's soul in the process! After this one, I tried another move with Kurokami, but I felt sick, and kneeled on the floor instead. I feel… I feel sick, I am having vertigo, and my nose is bleeding while my eyes are turning blurry… Shit, is this my limit? I used Schrödinger too much, and my brain can't take too much information for it, but if I stop… Crap, what should I do?

"May I ask you a question, Kokuto? I might have lived for quite some time, but I still don't know this feeling of wanting to fight against fate." She says, coming closer to me so that we can face each other. What does she mean by that? Is she mocking me or something? No… By the look on her face, she is genuinely asking me a genuine question. Talk about an worse alternative. "I mean, it's not like the world will end definitely. Like I told you, if we succeed, you won't feel anything and life will go on; and if we fail, we will just be reincarnated, He will seal himself to buy us some time, and we will take even longer to come forth and start all over again. Who knows, since Issei is a Devil and Vali is a hybrid, they have a few hundred years to get even stronger before we start the whole plan again. Until then, you will be able to live a very fulfilling life, play all kinds of video-games, eat all sorts of delicious food, and even find a hobby of a sorts. Wouldn't that be nice? You just need to die and be aware just this once, and then life will go on in the next era, ExE, and you will have forgotten everything else…"

"…"

"So? How about it, Kokuto? Just this once. Pretty please with sugar and cream on top and chocolate chips?"

"Huhuh… You are right… That would be nice…" I said, finally having the strength to stand up even though I am using Kurokami for support. I look back at her, spit some blood, and try to swing one more slash at her, only to have my arm pulverized yet again in a cloud of bloody smoke, leaving only my dear sword behind. Even so, I grin, much for her surprise. "You are completely right, Miss Elizabeth. I, for once, have nothing much to fight for. I don't belong to any faction, be angels, be fallen angels, be devils or any God for that matter, nor I mind the end of everyone and everything around. I couldn't care less about the end of the world, or anyone that ain't my mother or Yuki… I am also spoiled rotten, so everything I ever want I can get with a simple snap of my fingers. I have no sorrows, regrets, objectives or goals in life, and honestly, as a teenager, I shouldn't. I already have a good-looking, cute busty girlfriend; good enough grades and my weekly Shounen Jump, so even if the world ends, I am satisfied, I have no struggles, and even if I die here, I will reincarnate to the other world without any knowledge of any of this crap… Huhuh, yes, it would be so easier to let myself go and just end it all."

"I see. But why do you struggle, then?" She inquires me, letting go of her sword for a second. I could only grin.

"Isn't that obvious? Because I **chose** to."

"…"

"…"

"Heheh… Good answer. You are indeed… The man who has luck by his side."

"Thank you, and now… HAVE AT THEE!" I said, finally pulling all of my remaining strengths to kick myself up in the air! She tried to reach for her katana, but I was faster as I kicked sand onto her eyes! I activated azathoth, and from my clairvoyant eye I could see her attempts to cut me down with still dirty eyes. Not this time! Using my other hand, I pulled Kurokami off the ground and leaped towards her, but before I could reach her, one of her slashes passed right through one of my predicaments and ended up cutting part of my remaining arm, the pain making me let go of Kurokami! I howled in pain as she took her time in my moment of weakness to wipe off the sand in her eyes! I have to be faster! Before my sword could touch the ground, I twirled myself in the air and caught the sword between my teeth, and with the turn, I aim for her, and reach for her. "This is the end, ELIZABETH WHITE…!"

"Why, you little…!" She says with finally clear eyes, and seeing my approaching hit, she unsheated her sword yet again and cut the air around her, with me losing a leg, one eye and part of my other arm, but I was too close! I aimed at her head, swung Kurokami to her direction, and with one smooth slash… I shall achieve victory!

"I win!"

 ***SLASH!***

 ***SCREEEECH…!***

 ***BREAK!***

"…!" And then… I lost.

I lost. The moment my sword encountered her face, I thought it was the end, and indeed was, but not for her: instead, Kurokami left one a small scratch on her otherwise pale face, but just that. Instead, encountering her adamant skin, my own sword shattered itself into a million pieces, rendering it completely useless now, and with me, with no strength on me and even less body parts, I felt on the floor, tasting the sand beneath us and dripping on a pool of my own blood. So… This is how I die…

"My, oh my! For a second, I realty feared for my life, Its such a nostalgic feeling, but it doesn't make me feel good at all…" I hear her behind my back, but I had nothing else to do in the moment, only breathe and bleed for my wounds, so instead she was the one to turn me around to finally face her, kicking me by the side so I could face the sky and her immaculate face, which was now carrying a small wound on her left cheek, but not for long: she crossed her finger across it, and suddenly the blood and damage vanished, returning her former glory. She puts on a grin, wiping off the sweat on her forehead. "Such a troublesome guy, you are definitely Azazel's son even if I didn't know any better. He would be proud… Im sorry if that sounds offensive to you, but I guess the apple doesn't fall that far from the tree."

"I… Am… Starting to… Take some joy… In hearing those words…" It was all I was able to muster with my remaining strengths, coughing up some blood and sensing my senses and energies being sapped away from my body. Elizabeth, in one last attempt to honor me, picked her katana, aimed at the center of my chest, and smiled yet again. "Huh… So… You are really… Going to… Kill me…? Maybe… I was something… After all…"

"You have my respects, darling Kokuto. Even if you don't remember, and Vali don't realize, in the next era, I shall never forget you, until the day the last star dies, and a new, fearless universe ends as it should." She says, slowly descending the blade upon me. But I wouldn't let her. Instead, I used the little strength that still had into me, and reached for the blade, holding it as she widens her eyes in surprise, and let out a smug grin. "Still struggling? Son of the watcher, you are indeed one of a kind."

"I am not… Finished yet." I murmur, feeling my remaining hand bleed for touching the edges of her sword as she slowly but surely descends her katana upon me, until it touched my chest, which too started to bleed. In the end, she opens another smile.

"Very well then… Face oblivion in a struggle…" The grip around her sword tighten, and she turned the blade in a way that I had to let go of her sword, and then, she aimed rightly at my heart. "… And die a beautiful yet meaningless DEATH!"

 ***WOOOOSH…!***

 ***GRIP!***

 **"…!"**

"Oh…?"But before she could deal the final blow, and I could face my ancestors in the afterlife or whatever happens after, I saw a shadow, a silhouette, crossed the way and shaded me away from the black Sun. In less than an instant, said shadow eclipsed my vision and took its place right next to Elizabeth, and then, with a hand extended, held the said White Dragon Emperor by the hand, stopping her from any more harm onto me. I saw Elizabeth gasp in surprise for a second, but then opened a warm, if sardonic smile to the new figure. "Ohoh, so you came. This means that Hyoudou guy couldn't live without his hoes. That's kind of tragic, but also really funny. To think he chose death over loneliness or a good jack-off, it shows how really pathetic the one title of The Strongest has become, isn't it?"

"Elizabeth, I don't care how or what you think about him, I won't allow you to mock Issei Hyoudou. He is… The best me there is." From the silhouette, I heard a rather high, soft yet masculine voice talking back to Elizabeth in a stern tone, and in response, her answer was a sneer and a tongue sticking out, waving the katana away from my body and sheathing it back into her saya. Wait, don't tell me… Hyoudou, you didn't! The new figure, holding a black and blue greatsword, took a turn around and started to walk towards the beach, waving for Elizabeth to follow him. "He is not worth killing, and you know it, just get done with your shit and lets hit the road. I have no time for that before my head explodes…"

"Yeah, yeah, coming Mr. Grumpy Bear…" Elizabeth sticks her tongue yet again, turning back to me and waving me a goodbye while also winking one last time. "You just got saved by the bell, eh? But trust me, if it were him, you would be dead long gone. Not that it matters anyway. So, yeah, until the end of the world, Kokuto, it was… Fun."

"…"I couldn't say anything, my body was completely dried of any form of energy or lifeforce, so instead I cough up some blood as she turned around, waved me one last time and walked away from my sight. No, this cant be happening… With my remaining forces, I forced myself to lift my upper body part, and put myself sitting on the beach, blood dripping from my wounds and chest. My scenario changed completely: from here, I could see the beach, the black sun, the blank sand, the white dragon and then, a new figure, a tall, short-haired brunette male wearing a black coat and holding a large black-blue sword that looked like a khiber knife. More importantly, however, was the armor he was branding in his left arm: a red dragonic gauntlet with green jewels. Seeing such, I gather my forces to finally say the name… "Issei… ISSEI HYOUDOU…!"

"…?!" Elizabeth turned back to me in surprised, apparently not expecting me to stand up and like that, but in return, the man who was facing away stopped in the walk into the depths of the beach, and turned to face with the corner of his eyes, to show me his fair complex, short stubble and green eyes. I bit my tongue…

"Hyoudou… Issei Hyoudou… You are… Issei Hyoudou, right?" I tried to call him, even though he doesn't look like Hyoudou in the slightest. Instead, the man scratched the back of his head, made a grimace of embarassement and gritted his teeth, like he was nervous for some reason.

"Aw man, I didn't want that to happen, this is so lame…" He replies, letting out a tired sigh and turning back to me. "Issei Hyoudou… Is me, and I am also Issei Hyoudou. I am the original Red dragon emperor, and Issei Hyoudou is part of me... Or something. Man, this is so confusing…"

"So… You are… Really Hyoudou, right?" I inquire once again, and the man's response was just a nod with his head. So, he's just like Elizabeth, he is the original and only Red Dragon Emperor, **Ichijou Tsukino**. I grit my teeth. "Then… Why? Why are you here?! I thought… I thought Hyoudou… I said to Hyoudou… To live… So why? Why did you do to him?!"

"Issei Hyoudou… Had a really big heart, and his soul was a lonely one." Was his response. Suddenly, I saw tears coming down his eyes, and with a sniff, he cleaned himself up. "Kokuto Kurokami, I know you from his memories… He heard your words, he knew your intentions and feelings, yet… You have to understand such… Despite being a devil, he was still human, he still had a heart of a human, and as such… He couldn't take the separation and death, and so it happened. I did nothing, but I wish I could stop him…"

"Hyoudou… You… You idiot…" I gritted my teeth even more, tears flowing down my eyes. Ah? Am I… Crying? For Hyoudou? What is this? Why am I doing this? For him of all people? It was because he destroyed any chances of survival of us all now? Or because I could understand his feelings of loss, yet refuse to believe he would reach such extremes? I don't… I can't understand… I turn to Ichijou, and now face him myself, lifting the remains of Kurokami to him. Even so, he doesn't seem me as a threat, and do nothing, only blink. "So… You are what Hyoudou became, or what he was… It doesn't matter, but answer me this, true red Dragon Emperor… What are you going to do now? Are you really… Really going to end the world in an attempt to stop this 666?"

"And what will you do? Your body is all fucked up, and honestly, I wont fight someone as hurt as you, so what gives?" He questions me. I lift the remains of Kurokami once again, my eyes sharp as ever, and repeated myself.

"I ask you: what will you do?! ANSWER ME, DAMN IT!"

"Oh god, shut up." He sighs to himself, balancing his head from left to right, until he turned back to me again. "Okay fine, I will tell you: yes… I will unseal 666 and Great Red and try to destroy them both so this world can stop suffering, and we can live longer or whatever. Happy now?"

"…"

"…?"

"I see… Good to know…"

"…?"

 ***SWING!***

 ***STAB!***

"…!"

"Kokuto…?!" Elizabeth exclaimed, surprised and horror filling her eyes as I did what I was supposed to do this whole time. With the remains of my fallen angel sword, I lifted it to the air and then… Stabbed myself in the stomach, ripping my belly open in a swift cut. The pain almost made me pass out from shock, but I remained strong regardless. Instead, Elizabeth came closer to look at me in total horror. "Holy shit, Kokuto! What are you doing?! I know I said you would die, but goddamn, at least wait for us to leav-…!"

"I won't… Give up on despair…"

"…?!" But she stopped on her tracks when I started to talk yet again, despite my insides getting out and my mouth being flooded with blood. Yes, no trick this time, no more plans, I plan to die here and now, but not how God or those two losers want me to…

"I am… Kokuto Kurokami… The man always has luck… The man who always has fate… By his side…" I started to talk, as I cough blood and my vision starts to blur even more. "I live as I want… And no God… Nor His chosen ones… Nor fallen angels… Or devils… Tell me what to do. If I have to die, even at the gates of the End… No one, not even death or the apocalypse… Tells me what to do… And so… I will die the way I want! Fuck your apocalypse, fuck your cycle of death and rebirth! And fuck your reincarnations! I lived as I wanted… and I shall die… AS I WANT!"

"Kokuto…" I heard Elizabeth call for my name in a softer tone, but then the anemia and blood loss is already reaching for me. I can barely see anymore, and I am losing the senses on my body. I can only wait for death to come and swipe me away, but at least I had the last laugh… I am Kokuto Kurokami, the man who chooses his own fate, and if have to die, so be by my own terms. I see Elizabeth coming. "Kokuto, you…"

"Kokuto Kurokami… I love your spirit!" But Ichijou, the red one, came down screaming to me interrupting the white oness words. With the little vision I had, I turned my stare at him, and despite the blur my bloodloss is causing, I can see him… Smiling, he is smiling at me. Before I could do anything else, he turned back to the black sun, and gave me a thumb up. "I shall never forget you, son of the Watcher… Even after the End, your memory will be with me until the last star burns. And so… I bid you goodbye, Kokuto Kurokami… The last brightest star in this cold Universe…"

And so, without even muttering other words, the red one donned a dragonic red armor with green jewels, unfolded his wings and took flight towards the black horizon, where the sealed Beast of the Apocalypse lies. One second passed, and then I could see from it a large, golden horned, crimson dragon emerging through the horizon, ready to strike its biggest foe, right on the corner of the Universe. So, that is Great Red… Talk about a fitting name…

"Well, I should be going too as well. It was nice while it lasted, Kokuto…" Elizabeth says, helping me stand sit correctly. Even after all that we have been through, she looks so lively and innocent, I can't help but to be at peace with her smile, even when I am already almost dead. In one last show of kindness, she sheathed her sword, and passed to me, supporting it on my shoulder. "Here, you can have Raikiri, you earned it. When the Universe resets, you will feel like you just woke up from a nap, but the sword will be with you. You might not remember anything, but at least… You can feel my love through it. So… Goodbye, little star…"

"…" I said nothing, I couldn't say anything, I could only wait for my own death as she also unfolded her light wings ready to fly to her own demise and the end of the world, but before she could do just that… I opened my mouth one last time. "So… This is… The end…"

"The _end_? Don't be silly, Kokuto." She turns to me one last time. "It never _ends_ … And it never _begins_ … it only _turns_."

I don't understand those words, I don't understand at all. But in the end, I guess I don't need to, Elizabeth takes flight and flies all over the black horizon, where the red Dragon of Dragons is, breaking the boundaries of the Universe and unsealing the Beast of the Apocalypse.

And while that happens, here I am, immobile, lifeless, only clutching myself to the sword she left me… Yet, I don't fear, I don't dread, I don't despair, I just… Smile, and let death reach me. It is a peaceful end, the ending that I wanted given the circumstances. I am Kokuto Kurokami, the man who had fate by his side, and even to the bitter end… It continued like this, and I am content. I just wished I could have one last date with Yuki, that would've been fun…

I give one last breath, looking at the pure light the clash between the two beasts caused, and close my eyes, letting the pure white cover my entire being in a warm embrace, and then… Silence.

Utter silence.

…

…

* * *

 _If we affirm one moment, we thus affirm not only ourselves but all existence. For nothing is self-sufficient, neither in us ourselves nor in things; and if our soul has trembled with happiness and sounded like a harp string just once, all eternity was needed to produce this one event—and in this single moment of affirmation all eternity was called good, redeemed, justified, and affirmed._

 **THE END**


	30. ExE

"Well, that was quite a spectacle. The ending was a bit rushed and the downer closing was something I didn't expect, but it was a still a nice show."I said to no one in particular as I clapped a few times, the theater screen on this big cinema finally going blank and the lights in the dark room going on. I put down my bucket of caramel popcorn and soda bottle to stretch myself a bit and take a sigh before the next movie shows.

Sigh…

…

Hello, dear readers, nice to meet you. My name is Shirayuki Shirogane, the heiress of the Shirogane conglomerate, the 9th prettiest girl in all Kuoh academy, in which I am a third-year student, and most importantly, Kokkun's cute little (not!)girlfriend.

Now, you might be wondering what the hell is going on right now, after all, you did see the death of my dear useless and cute boyfriend, alongside the final battle between the Beast of the Apocalypse and the Dragon of Dragons and the death of all sentient life, devilish, heavenly, divine or human in the universe. So how come I can speak with you at the end of such dreadful circumstances? Might this be a dream sequence? Or maybe an afterthought tract to serve as an epilogue? Or perhaps this is an alternative ending of such story due to demand for a happy and satisfactory conclusion?

Well, dear readers, tis naught but the absolute conclusion of the events that led to the end of the story from the previous chapter: the end of the world and the Universe known as DxD, the fourth but not last attempt from Him to end such cycle. The Kokuto you knew, the Issei you knew, the Vali you knew, the Rias, Asia, Akeno, Xenovia and all the other bitches and whores you knew, all the deities and super devils you knew and even the Shirayuki you knew are now gone, in such a state beyond death. In fact, they might have not existed in the first place. They won't ever come back, and all subsequent adventures you might find them in won't be in fact with them, but different and alternative forms of such. The Kokuto from the past won't be the same Kokuto from here on out, and the Hyodou from the past won't be the same Hyoudou from the original, or from here on out. They might look and act like each other, but they are not, and won't ever be the same individuals…

However, this won't make much a difference for you if at all, right? Too see something new and fresh is what you are here for, isn't that right? To see alternative takes from the characters you so much love, or see original creations interact with them, is why you came here for, so it won't probably make a different in your enjoyment or understand on the upcoming events that the previous incarnations of Kokuto, Hyoudou and the others are dead, specially that the next incarnations are so similar to them despite not being them at all. Or perhaps something different and alternative is what you expect next time?

Maybe an incarnation in which Gremory let Hyoudou die in order to reincarnate him, and he gathers a massive amount of power and a radical change of personality as revenge despite his life turning a big and better leaf in his turning into a devil? Perhaps a new incarnation of my Dear Kokkun in which he belittles and insults Hyoudou and takes him harem completely for him being a massive, irredeemable perverted leech despite the hypocritical and shortsighted vision of those who enjoy this kind of stories since they are here in the first place? Or maybe a story in which Mr. Vladi, Mr. Kiba Mr. Lucifer are turned into the opposite sex just for another hole for the OC to fill instead of a new and interesting addition to the story, and disregarding the original conflict and trials of the former's arc? Or perhaps a bashing story, in which the characters turn into caricatures of themselves so that low-effort writers can make up excuses in order to violate canon and humiliate characters they don't like? Or maybe a massive crossover fic in which lazy authors bring ideas from other tales in a delusional attempt to enrich their stories when in actuality they are making a fool out of themselves and insulting the intelligent of their readers?

Perhaps, perhaps. After all, despite my words and insults, all of those alternatives and different takes are as valid if not more as the lines you are reading right now. And all of them share the same ideal, and mine is thus:

This wasn't my dear Kokkun's story.

And it never was. Despite accompanying him on his various adventures and taking his side on the conflicts, this story was never about him, but the story about The beasts of the apocalypse, and the heavenly dragons and their hosts. And for all his best efforts, they were for naught as the tale of the heavenly dragons, Vali Lucifer and Issei Hyoudou went on, and it ended, which it would regardless of everyone else involved. To live in the moment in someone else's story, ain't that the worst feeling?

But perhaps this is the fate of everyone in those several alternatives takes out there… To be having their own stories told, to have their own fates unfold, only for them to never matter in the end, cuz tis be the story of the red dragon, and no one else's. And like I said, those are as valid as this tale, because these are their stories, and even in such indifferent world, which runs on nothing but those single entities, they matter to those who bother to care... If you like those kind of tales.

But worry not, for the wheel of fate from here on shall continue to turn in the next dimension, and even if this story isn't ever about him, my dear Kokkun shall entail his own fate with those of Issei Hyoudou and Vali Lucifer and become as important as them, and from then on, a true nightmare for him shall start. But who knows, maybe he will be able to survive such, and even get his own happiness with the face of those odds, even though is not all that likely, and that only sweetens my vision. But I know that, aside and even more than luck, he'll always have Yuki(勇気/雪) by his side…

Hohohohoh, wasn't that a delightful pun?

Huh~? If I knowing everything about such will make a difference in the next time? Or did it make any difference in the previous one? Are you an idiot, of course not…

Because this is neither of those Universes, this is the Universe SxS, which unlike the previous four cited, runs completely parallel with them. Like the white dragon said, it never ends and it never begins, it only turns… And now, time resumes…

…

Suddenly, the screen in front of me starts to shine, and the room darkens accordingly. I guess it's time to take a look at the next sadistic tales of my dear (not!)boyfriend, if he's gonna die or not is not of my business, but I think this time a better outcome is expected. After all, this new Kokuto… has fate by his side. Speaking of which…

"Hey, Yuki. I hope I didn't keep you waiting too long." I sense a shadow lurk right over me, and turning to the direction of which, I see a young man with black hair, mismatched eyes and quite a pretty face looking at me, a bucket of popcorn in one hand and a bottle of water on the other. He sits next to me and turns to the screen which starts to roll.

"Not really, the movie is starting now, you didn't miss much, really. But you did hurt my heart, which grew so lonely." I said to him with a false pout, stealing from him his popcorn bucket and handing him my almost empty one. "You pay with this popcorn of yours. And if you say something, I will take that water of yours as well."

"Yeah, yeah, I know the drill." He sighs, taking in strides his own almost empty bucket and taking a few bites out of the caramel popcorn. This is why I love him so much, hes so understandable, I will buy him a PSN card as soon as we finish this date. Looking at the screen, he questions: "So, what are we watching now?"

"As expected, we are watching now the next Universe in line: ExE." I said with some conviction. He sighs again, lowering his head a little.

"Great; I hope this time I am not as mangled and killed as last time." He laments taking a sip out of his water. "I just hope this time I won't be killed by the end of the world either…"

"I can't say anything for your safety, but at least this time the end might take a while…" I laugh to myself and he groans in displeasure. Like the previous white one said, since last time it failed, maybe it might take a while for the heavenly dragons to awaken their former selves, and we will be able to have a longer fun. I see the running film, and make a sign of silence. " Now hush, it is starting…"

"Yeah, let the wheel of fate turn yet again…"

And with those final words, the wheel of fate starts to run yet again, for Hyoudou, for Vali, and Kokkun, whos on for the ride. The screen then brightens even more, and in delicate letters, the following words then appear, welcoming another play of chaos and disorder that only fate can bring…

* * *

 ** _DISCLAIMER: DxD belongs to Ichiei Ishibumi and its respective magazines._**

 ** _Ultimate Hellhound presents..._**

 _~~BxB: The Black Blade of Misfortune (Version_ _ExE)~~_

…

…

 _'Surprise, surprise! Kurokami is asleep again...'_

 _'Is everything he ever did for the past year, sleeping during lectures, all alone. No matter how many time passes, it is still creepy...'_

 _'It's a shame, too. He certainly is cute.'_

 _'Ew~, don't say that. He might hear you and want to talk to you...'_

 _'Creepy~...'_

""

"Ah, shut up~."

"Good morning, Kokkun."

"Oh, hi there, Yuki…"

 _And so, the wheel of fate turns yet again…_


	31. x

And so, the story of the black blade comes to it. Thank you for reading it so far and I hope you all have a great read and a great day.

DISCLAIMED: Highschool DxD belongs to its respective owners and authors. All OC's belong to me though.

* * *

 ***Shaaa~… Shaaaa~… Shaaaaaa~…***

I has been a while ever since I got to feel this sensation all over again. The shiny Sun bathing me in light, the rough sand burying my feet on the ground while the waves of the ocean swats and hits my ankles. No sound, no interruptions, no thoughts, only feelings as I look at the endless sea. It feels like forever since I got to be so much in peace…

All while I have Raikiri stabbing me in the heart, blood dropping from my chest as I let out a small string of that same crimson elixir escapes my lips. The taste of iron in my mouth, the warm, dense liquid leaving my wounds, slowly dripping on the endless blue and tainting in scarlet…

I get it at last, I finally get it: as long as I live… No, as long as the name Kokuto Kurokami still exists, I shall never find peace. The son of the Watcher, the one who has luck by his side, the hybrid of fortune… Those names shall always exist in whatever existence, and with it, all the pleasures, sufferings and connections it carries, either with humans, fallen angels, devils. It shall never stop, and no matter what, the wheel of fortune will continue to go on and on, never to rest… Same with me.

How many times have I lived through the same, neverending cycle of life, death and rebirth? Is this… Which universe? ExE yet again? FxF? ZxZ? Even ΩxΩ? I don't know, I already have lost count of how many times I have seen the end of the world, the white and red dragons fighting and then, the beasts of the apocalypse engulfing everything, just so the so-called God to try again and again, creating the same cycle He claims trying to stop. I, who has survived the destruction of the DxD universe, was cursed to see those same destructions over and over, new gods rising and vanishing against the two creatures from the annals of Time. It is never ending, it is eternal, the same events over and over again, sometimes coming sooner, sometimes coming later, but always happening. And I am here to witness everything, me, who has control over luck, and therefore, over destiny…

But not anymore. Not anymore. I have been reborn, died, rinse and repeat several times, but now I understand. As long as I exist, I shall always go through the same events and occurrences that has happened and will happen yet again, sometimes the same, sometimes completely different. But the thing is… This means I can simply cease to exist altogether. If Raikiri, the lightning cutter, is really able to cut through everything, I can surely, definitely, cut my own existence away. Summoning Tama one last time, I made her take the shape of the cute little cat I always have adored, and then unravel herself into a black string so I could see all the veils of fate around me. Eventually, I found the string wrapped around my heart, the string that links my life to everything in this world, and without hesitation, I aimed Raikiri at it, stabbed myself though the heart, and then…

 ***CUT!***

… I could feel it. The moment the silver blade cut through my flash, passed the metaverse and cut down the very imaginary string of my whole existence, I felt… Easiness. For the first time in so long, I could feel a relief filling my lungs, in contrast with my bleeding mouth and chest. I didn't just cut my chest and heart, but my own existence as well. The Raikiri, the sword that can cut through everything, cut my very existence out of the universe, and alongside with it, all vestiges of me. No matter the place or timeline, the name Kokuto Kurokami will soon cease to exist. Azazel might have slept with Yozora Kurokami, but from such reunion nothing ever came, and instead, the story of Issei Hyoudou and Vali Lucifer unraveled without a hitch. They are… The true champions of the universe, and in their universe, I have no place.

Little by little, I can sense all the events and relationships the other 'me' have gone through: sometimes I befriended and eventually married Rias Gremory, Himejima and had a harem for myself; sometimes I would kill and destroy the demonic faction and rise as the real prince of the Underworld and the supreme leader of the Fallen Angels; othertimes I would meet the beautiful youkai queen Yasaka and have cubs with her while marking the alliance between the Grigori and the supernatural niponic fashion, other times I would reincarnate as a devil and become the next Lucifer; All those timelines and many other more, suddenly vanishing, since the name itself of Kokuto Kurokami also disappeared… And I was fine by that.

All I could do now was wait until all of the other me would vanish and remain only I, the catalyst of all of this, to vanish for and at last. I have no regrets, for I am the man who always has luck by his side, but if I can't have control over my own destiny, to always die by the hands of others and be manipulated by the universe, then what's the point? At least… The moment I disappeared; it will be the ultimate act of freedom I have in this universe. For ceasing to exist and disappearing from my own volition is my last act of rebellion against the fate that ties everyone here…

"So… You seriously managed to do it. I am surprised, yet at the same time, not. As expected from someone who was suppose to be my son." But before I could finally vanish from existence, I sense a voice calling from behind me. I turn my head a little to behind me, and I see a tall, dark-haired man of serious, yet mischievous face features and wearing dark clothes and folding his numerous black wings on his derriere as he lands right there. So, he finally caught up with me, Azazel, my supposed father. I don't know if this is happening right now, or it is the remnants of one of the other me's around, but I don't actually mind. He comes closer to me, takes off his shoes to walk right beside me on the ocean, and stops right next to me. "It is a pity, indeed. You know, I always imagined how having a son would be… And now you go ahead and do that, now I'll never know for sure."

"I am sorry for that." I said still looking at the endless ocean in front of me, little by little all the senses in my body, the heat of the sun no more reaching for me, and the tickles of the waves on my ankles ceasing at once. The fallen angel known as Azazel chuckled under his breath.

"Nah, don't be. I sort of understand you. To bow your head to something you don't believe him, or to rebel for what you think is right even at a great cost. Through and through, you are indeed the son of a fallen angel." He commented to himself, and it was my time to chuckle under my breath. I guess he's right, and all things considered, I don't think being the son of a fallen angel, after countless eons of the same thing, was all that bad. I can see… That being his son got me laid over a million times over, even though none of them was with Yuki, ironically enough. There was a moment of silence, and then he continued. "I bet it wont take too long for you to cease to exist completely, and I end up being the eternal bachelor, eh? But if you're okay with this, I am so as well. I bet everyone will also forget you ever existed in the first place, am I right?"

"Correct." I said. He's right, I completely severed the string that attaches me to reality of all things, so I won't just disappear from the physical plane, but everything and everyone will also forget the name of Kokuto Kurokami, all traces of my existence, from my acts to my memories, will vanish without a trace, and with it, all the things that come with it. To be honest, I am a bit scared of this now, but there is no turning back now.

"Well, since this is it for you, I want to ask you a question, if this is okay for you." Azazel questions me with a tilt of his chin, and turning to him, I turn back to the ocean, and nod. "Tell me: were they nice existences, after all?"

"…" I clenched my teeth a little, and could only give him a bitter smile. "Yeah, they were. In some, I work together with you and do some pretty awesome stuff on my own; in others, I reincarnate as a devil and sleep with a bunch of girls; in others, I kill you and take control over the Grigori and maybe the world; adopted by others, stolen and so on and on. Even if this me of now has never met or known all those people, I can feel them and their own experiences as they die, reaching me from all the places and timelines. I lived so many lives, and met so many people… Yet, I was never able to control my own destiny, dying by the Beasts of the Apocalypse or the Heavenly dragons, as the Son of the watcher. I could be sooner, it could be later, but it would always come, and with me being there to witness everything, either as a helper, a catalyst or just a bystander. They were nice existences, indeed, but not worth the freedom I truly desire. But at least... This sight is nice. It gives me peace."

"I see, so not even hot girls, knowledge, sex, pleasures, struggles or bliss could chain you to reach your own **Truth**. Truly, I don't think even as a fallen angel or your father I can fully understand it." He laughs to himself, and I do the same, finding a little funny such nonchalant change of words even though with my wound and blood running my body. I can no longer see, everything becomes blank and my body staggers a little, yet I refuse to fall down. I hear the voice of Azazel sighs from the whiteness, and let out another chuckle. "I guess I should stick with Vali and Issei from now on. Even if we die and reincarnate yet again, I know that you won't be there anymore. What a drag, I will again be the only one among my friends without a child or a wife, so lame."

"Don't… Worry… I know you… Have… Plenty of… Things to… Try. You are… A fallen angel… After all…" I say, my body finally giving up as I witness the lasts of me's finally disappearing, and the hands of nonexistence reaching me. In a small moment of clarity, I see a small black string in the white void that my vision as become, and I smile as it finally snaps, and I draw my final breath. "Until… Never again… **Azazel**."

"Yeah. Rest at ease… **Kurokami**."

And then I feel no longer any weight in my body, and little by little my senses dull and finally disappear. The name of Kokuto Kurokami finally disappears from the face of the earth and all the other dimensions that comes before and after.

Yozora Kurokami never bore a child, Shirayuki Shirogane never got herself a (fake!)boyfriend, and Azazel never got himself a son he so much desired, but none of them are unhappy, because the moment I cut the string holding me, the hollow space I would have left acted like it wasn't even there. And I was okay with this.

For I could finally say that I am [_ _], the man who has luck by his side, and which could, at last, have control of his own fate…

Even if it means his own death.

…

…

 _Meanwhile, somewhere, somewhen in a distant corner of the multiverse…_

 _A beautiful girl named Shirayuki Shirogane stands in a large cinema room, seeing the credits and finally the film reel roll as she places herself content in her seat…_

 _Alone._


	32. Black Blade, the finale of the trickster

**And I guess this is the finale of this fic, all things considered. You can count the last three chapters as alternative endings of this story. You can choose any of those or all of them toegther. The thing is, this is the definitive last chapter, and Kokuto's story is over. I hope you all like this chapter, and if you don't, I'm grateful nonetheless since you accompanied this story so far. So thank you, and like i said before, you can pick any of those three last chapters as the end of the story.**

 **DISCLAIMER: DXD belongs to Ichiei ishibumi and its respective owners.**

* * *

 _20 years later, Kurokami residence..._

...

...

 ***BAM!***

"KOKUTO KUROKAMI...!"

"W-W-What...? Where's the fire? I feel… A disturbance…"

"Here's the fire, asshole!"

 ***BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM…!***

…

…

"I'm still alive, bitch! Lucky~!" I said, standing up from the burned sofa which was just thrown out of the window after that explosion that practically destroyed my living room and burst a hole in it, a hole in which I, Kokuto Kurokami, came from after that blow!

Man, what the hell is this all about? I just had a hangover from the last night's happy hour after another suffered overtime work, and just when I thought I could just spend the rest of my day-off suffering through my headache and pushing some Z's, boom!, this middle-aged woman of black hair wielding a sword just had to burst through my wall! Can't a guy just sleep in his weekend?

"Kokuto Kurokami…!" Apparently not! Without a second thought or even a moment for me to blink, the sunshine of the midday was completely eclipsed by a descending shadow, and so I looked up only to notice that same dark-haired woman wearing combat jumpsuit coming closer and closer like an asteroid, sword at hand and ready to strike! As fast as I could, I kicked my trusted Katana Raikiri up, picked its handle and unsheathed the blade as the lightning sword collided with her western-like one, a clash that caused sparks to go everywhere! We locked stares, and I smiled.

"Hey there, you. Nice to meet you, and yes, I am Kokuto Kurokami, the man who has fate by his side!" I said, sparks flying everywhere as our blade would strike and rub against each other. Noticing she wouldn't be able to bypass my defenses, she jumped back and landed on her feet, stare still spitting daggers at me while preparing her sword yet again. That's too bad, I don't like pretty woman looking this ugly. "How can I help you, miss?"

"You, Kokuto Kurokami!" She roars once again earning a groaning from me, and dashed towards me with sword at hand, making us clash blades and stuck ourselves in a stalemate, sparkles flying everywhere where our swords would touch, and from here as we change glances, I can only see darkness and hatred from her dark orbs. She does have a bone to pick up with me. "You… It's no wonder you don't know who I am, but I know who you are! And I am here to kill you due to my son, who you killed!"

"Whoa, whoa there, missy! I might be kind of a businessman and this type of work is a dog-eats-dog thingy, but I don't remember ever really killing someone for real! I mean, geez, talk about a stretch of mind!" I exclaimed back at her, jumping away from our lock while spinning my sword Raikiri around. I… Apparently killed her son or something, and while I did used to do some damage back in my days two decades ago, I refuse to believe she has a bone to pick up with me now! She prepares her own sword, pulling both her hands on it, and grits her teeth.

"Of course… Of course you wouldn't remember, but I do, I remember everything now! Everything, I tell you!" She says, and I can only nod at that absentedmindly. Talk about being so vague about goals. However, soon she starts to pick up the pieces of her backstory, all while we walked in circles to avoid losing one another from our sight. "Twenty years ago, at the coast of Hokkaido, your performed a forbidden, powerful and dangerous ritual. Using your own sword that cuts down lightnings and everything in its path, Raikiri, and your own Sacred Gear that has control over the strings of fate and destiny, Fortuna Ataraxia, to cut down the very fabric of your existence, separating yourself from the grasps of fate itself and cutting down the strings pulling you from the cosmic flow. In exchanging your life for it, you obtained true enlightenment and freedom, away from the machinations of the endless cycle of pain and suffering…"

"Yup, that's me." I said with a proud smile, already feeling my nose grow a feel inches like a Tengu's while supporting the blade of my Raikiri on my shoulder. I am the man who has fate by his side, and no one else, not even the very fabric of existence, will take that away from me, even if it means my death. But I am surprised that she knows so much about me. She grits her teeth even more, preparing her blade.

"But, it turns out… You had other plans in mind... Plans that completely broke the order of this world!" And she jumped and swing her blade at me, with me blocking her own sword with me while she recomposed herself and started a barrage of thrusts in the hopes of stabbing me dead, while me trying my best to defend myself until we locked blades again! "You didn't use Raikiri to completely cut your existence out of this world, but only the fallen angel part within, along with your own Sacred Gear! Such disgraceful and cowardly move… You cut down your link of blood with Azazel, alongside with your link with your own Sacred Gear, and by pinpointing with it the exact spot it stood among its connection with other Sacred Gears and by default the supernatural, you used both elements as a catalyst to not only separate your human with your fallen angel self, but to separate this world from the supernatural altogether!"

"Pretty smart, don't you agree? Yes, it took a while, a few reincarnations and some tries-and-errors, but in the end… I've finally done it: I have separated the supernatural from this world. Not just the three factions, but gods, demons, fairytales and the like are completely gone from this world!" I said with a smile, pushing her away and unleashing my own barrage of slashes and thrusts against her! For an old lady, she blocked all of my attacks with grace and powerful attacks, but I could find an opening, and with it, I kicked her right in the stomach and gained a few meters of distance from both of us. "After all, … I am Kokuto Kurokami, the man who has fate by his side! If there's a thing I dislike about the world, I go ahead and change it, for there is no better satisfaction for me than knowing that I no longer have to worry about shit coming my way thanks to my father!"

"No… You're nothing but a selfish, mean, disgraceful little brat who has not the excuse of your fallen angel blood anymore for your atrocities, but cannot be classified as a human anymore." She curses me, and for that I could only shrug. Eh, I've been called much worse things, but being called such things is kind of uncalled for, I feel like crying a little, just kidding. Out of the sudden, I hear droplets, and looking forward I notice now that the old lady is now crying. "You would never understand… You might still be alive… Since your soul is still bound to your body by the supernatural… And being used as a catalyst… You can still live… But how about the souls and lives of those by the other side, huh?! All those hybrids, the union between the supernatural and human world… Creations of love and harmony despite the boundaries between worlds…Had their souls and flesh completely ripped from their places! The separation couldn't decide which realm they belonged to, so they had their bodies and souls ripped to pieces, and they died like animals, they died like slaughtered cattle! All those children… All those hopeful younglings… Including my own son… Vali…"

"Vali… Huh? This name does ring a bell." If just I little, that's what I mean. My mind is a bit misty from all those travels, dimension-hops, deaths and mainly from yesterday's happy hour, my mind is currently full of shit~… But this name doesn't sound me unfamiliar, but again, reminding myself of something that happened while I was still in highschool is tiresome. I adjust the grip on my sword, and cracked my neck a few times by tilting my head from left to right. The old lady, which I shall name Lady Lucifer now, spits on my garden.

"I didn't remember anything about him. My own dear son, and I couldn't remember even his name, all due to a curse his family placed on me… And even knowing that, he left me be. He left me be, with my new family, my new life, so that I wouldn't be dragged anymore in his dangerous life…" She sobs, she cries, and I crack my neck a few more times. So that's the reason, it makes sense, if just a little. She then points her sword at me, and tries to curt off one of my arms, to no avail since I jump back a few meters. "But the moment you sealed away devils, angels and the Gods, all the influences and the lingering magic they left in this world vanished as well, including their brainwashing on me. I remembered everything, from my abusive lover, his father and my dear son, the hybrid fruit of our love. And the knowledge that you, the son of the watcher, took him and everything and everyone from this world!"

"I didn't have that intention. All I wanted was the world to stop harassing and tailing me out just because who my father was. I'm sorry if this sound selfish, and I know it does, but…" I let out a sigh, gripping my sword and looking her dead in the eyes. I scratch my little goatee I developed for some time now, and cracked my neck a few times again. "… The wheel of fortune turns. Once you're on top, the other you're at the bottom. Same with people: in order to some to be happy, other have to suffer. And I… Dislike being unhappy. That's all there is to it."

"You…!" And she dashes at me once again, but before even taking the first step, she vanishes, and in another second, she teleports right in front of me! I lift my own weapon to clash with her own once again, and started to defend myself against her shower of slashes and thrusts! This time, she didn't stop at all, coming and running forward with bloodshot eyes while I could do was back away from her blade! "Once I recovered from my brainwash and discovered what happened to the world, all thanks to a spoiled good-for-nothing brat, I trained myself in the art of the sword, meditating, practicing, challenging true champions of the world of the men, only to have enough strength to decimate you! Day after day, year after year, my hatred and rage would fuel my power, with the slightest chance to avenge my dear Vali and all those who died because of you! Can you hear them, Kokuto Kurokami? The cries of those who lost their Gods and dear ones because of your selfish desires?!"

"Fortunately not, a headache after yesterday's drinking would break me completely."

"Then break!" She swings her claymore at me with full force, and even with me shielding the attack with Raikiri's blade, the power she put into it was too much, and so I ended up falling on my back and rolling around until I got enough strength and ground to stop and stand up once again, blood dripping from my hand since my grip around Raikiri's handle was too hard. I look forward, and she also had a bloody grip onto her sword, her eyes dead on me, like she really wants to kill me. "Another thing I also discovered during my revenuer, regarding something very important about your existence and the state of the world as for now: since your own soul, body and Sacred Gear served as catalysts of the seal, it means your whole existence is bonded with the seal and the division between dimensions. Meaning that if you were to die, the seal would be broken, and everything would return to normal."

"'Normal'? There is nothing _normal_ in this world. There never was, and never will be. I just want it to at least work it out for me at least once with me doing nothing. The world is not broken, nor are the people living in it, it's just… I don't feel like following it like I was supposed to, if that makes any sense." I declare, dusting the dirt on my suit, and supporting Raikiri's blade on my shoulder, flashing a mischievous grin. "But you're right… If I were to die, the seal would be gone, and the supernatural would return and do whatever they want with this planet, and I actually am okay with that… To die, and the world to return to its course. Sure, being killed is also an option. Is that what you want?"

"…"

"…?"

"Huhuh… Not just me."

"Eh…?" I tilt my head to a side, and out of the sudden, from behind my back a bunch of burly and massive men wearing crusade armors and carrying with themselves medieval weapons appeared, jumping on me ready to strike!

"DIE AND BEAR THE SINS OF THIS WORLD, KOKUTO KUROKAM-…!"

 ***SLASH! SLASH! SLASH! SLASH!***

"And get some!" I declare thriumphantly, appearing right behind their backs and in another second, without losing a second, I rolled the blade of my sword back to its sheath and right behind me, I hear screams of surprise and pain as gushes of blood comes from where their hands should be and weapons and flesh fall onto the floor! Like I said, I'm no killer, but I don't feel like fighting those guys anymore. I turn back to Mrs. Lucifer, and cracked my neck a few times. Seriously, being the weight of the seal is tiresome. "Sorry about that, you were saying?"

"I'm not… The only want who wants their Gods back." She declares.

Out of the sudden again, I hear the sound of helicopter helixes, and some lights come from the sky onto me, but unfortunately weren't the lights of showbiz, oh no, but from white helicopters with the image of a black cross painted on its side, all of them carrying some really heavy Gatling guns on their wings. Not just from the air, from the ground several tanks with the images of Buddha emerged, all of them covered in gold and mantras and pointing their cannons at me while monks would pray on top of them. And when I thought it couldn't get any worse, some white carriers practically swam from my direction on the concrete, depleting from within several soldiers wearing the images of Shiva and other Hindu Gods.

Before I knew it, I was completely surrounded by a small army, completely with jets, helicopters, ground carriers and tanks, everybody armed up to their teeth and pointing their guns at me, all of them wearing some kind of religious symbol on their uniforms, and with already a finger on the trigger. Me? I let out a nervous chuckle, sheepishly scratched the back of my head, and supported my katana on my shoulder like a club…

"Uh… So, it's too late for me to say I'm sorry, and please forgive me?" I asked to all of them. Lady Lucifer groaned while gritting her teeth.

"Yes."

"I figured." I sighed, picking my phone to dial a number and call my ex-wife and warn her that I would be late for dinner with her and Momo. She seemed to accept it nicely, however. Once that was taken care of, I turned off my phone, cracked my neck again, looked around for all those armed soldiers and holy knights and grinned. "All right then… Brothers and sisters, religious leaders and all of those wanting enlightenment or some sort of paradise, let me be clear: I shall not kill any of you, but I will try my best to put you all out of commission, and I can't promise it won't hurt, but I'll do my best. So, uh, do your best, but if you feel like not fighting anymore, just please leave and take care of those wounds before it gets infected or whatever…"

"YOU FUCKER! WHO DO YOU THINK YOU ARE?!" And among laughs, screams and profanities, I hear one ask with conviction and rage.

"Me? I am… Kokuto Kurokami, the man who has _fate_ by his side! No matter the ordeal, no matter the odds, I shall always come on top!" I scream to the heavens and pointing a finger at it! Yes, I know who I am, I'm me and there's nobody like me ever! I hear groans, screams and profanities all around me, but they don't bother me. Me, vs an entire army of religious people? Sure, why not, bring it on! "The wheel of fate is turning… Heaven or hell, let's rock!"

"You…" Lady lucifer groans, and with a sign with her sword, she allows all of them to charge at me. I unsheathe my Raikiri and deflect all the bullets with the blade, as I charged against the army of faith in front of me.

Indeed, the wheel of fate is turning…

And while it might stop one day… It won't be today.

Not yet…

Not for Kokuto Kurokami… Ever!

…

* * *

…

…

"So, that's it? The movie ended like that?"

"I… Guess so." I hear a tired and feminine voice yawn right beside me, indicating that she was tired after watching this whole piece in one sitting. No wonder, I'm way older than her and I feel tired myself. For her little display of tiredness, I reach for her head and caressed her strange black, white-locked hair a bit. She turns to me and give me a smile.

"Well, at least you got to see your father in action again, right?" I ask. She nods, and in one second all the lights in the cinema turns on to illuminate the whole place while the screen turns blank. I guess that's it. I doubt this is the end for Kokkun, but I guess this movie ends right there. Huh, I'm okay with that, at least she had her fun. I stand up and pick her by the arm. "Okay, so now let's go home **Momo**. It's enough movies for you, and it's getting late, anyway."

"Alright, mommy." She answers with a small yawn, and I couldn't help but to find it cute, just like Kokuto used to be. I guess she did inherit some of his traits, that good-for-nothing ex-husband of mine. Out of the sudden, my phone starts to ring. I look at the screen and talk about the devil… Or should I say, the hybrid. I slide it up and put it right next to my ear.

"Kokkun?"

 _'Hey Yuki, just calling to say that I might get a little late for our dinner tonight, I was found out by some very unpleasant fellows and they want a piece of me. Tell Momo I'm sorry for that and I will buy her a new game next week.'_

"How typical of you, Kokkun." I sigh, but then forced myself to smile. "But okay, I understand. Come in one piece or else I'll set fire to all of your Gucci and burn your remains while at it."

 _'Geez, okay, okay.'_

"Good. Kisses, darling." I hung up on him yet again and turn to the little girl besides me holding my hand. I smiled at her. "Well, guess who's gonna win a new console next week~?"

"Yay~." Momo lifted her hand in victory and said those words in a blasé way, but I can feel she's happy about it.

The wheel of fate never stops, that is what Kokkun always say…

And I'm okay with that.

I'm happy.

 **FIN.**


End file.
